Out of the dark
by Sandylee007
Summary: COMPLETED! After a night that turned everything upside down, Kai is left left broken. Will his friends be able to help him on time or is the damage beyond prepearing? Pairings: HilKa, TyKa, onesided? ReKa. ALTERNATIVE ENDINGS NOW ADDED.
1. The Beginning

Ginger eyes observed carefully the snowflakes falling on the black car's window, only to melt away soon after ending their long journey. He blinked. Was he also melting away, just like the snowflakes? Was he going to fade away?

" We're here, Kai", a soft voice informed him.

It was just then he noticed that the car had stopped. He blinked. Had he really been zoned out the entire time? Had he been a slightest bit more himself, he would've smirked at the irony. He, Kai Hiwatari, so lost in his own thoughts that he'd lost the touch to reality.

Face terrifyingly blank, he followed the man who'd talked to him earlier out of the car and towards the door of a huge mountain-cabin the man had rented.

" This will do you good, Kai", the man, Mr. Dickinson, promised him, faking a smile. " They'll take a good care of you. You can… heal in peace".

Receiving no reply from the apathetic teen, Mr. Dickinson shook his head and sighed quietly.

_I wonder if even they can bring him back…_

He reached his hand to ring the doorbell, but before his hand ever touched the door it flew open, and he was faced with the determined face of Tyson Granger.

" They're here!" Tyson screamed to someone waiting inside, nearly exploding his ears with the volume. Seeing the look upon his face, Tyson smirked sheepishly and scratched his head. " Sorry 'bout that. It's just that… Well, we've been a little on the edge here".

" It's alright, Tyson", he calmed the navy-hared teen down, then turning his head to look at Kai, who didn't seem to pay any attention to his surroundings. " Kai, it's time to go in".

Not responding in any way, the teen followed him inside, not taking even a glance at Tyson, whose face was filled with utter concern towards his friend. Without saying a word, the trio walked into the living-room. From there they found four deeply agitated teens, who carefully rose to their feet from the seats they'd taken long before.

" Hi Kai", Ray greeted, with a small, noticeably sad smile upon his lips.

" Yeah. It's good to have you back", Max joined, voice still joyful despite the worry.

Without a word or reaction, Kai sat on the chair nearest to him, wrapping his hands protectively around himself.

" So… How are you doing?" Kenny asked, trying desperately to make Kai talk, scratching his head in deep discomfort.

Kai didn't seem to even notice them. Instead the Russian turned his head to look out of the window, locking his gaze to the falling snowflakes.

" I think I should go", Mr. Dickinson announced, looking at them all with sad eyes. " Good luck. Keep me posted if anything happens".

" We will", Tyson promised, and with that the man left.

Hearing the door close, they all looked at each other, same puzzlement in their eyes. What were they supposed to do? How were they supposed to fix Kai if he was this badly broken?

" Would you guys mind if… if I want a moment alone with him?" Hilary suddenly asked, speaking for a first time since Kai's arrival.

Tyson felt a hard bang in his chest. He knew that before all this started, Kai and Hilary had became… close. _Really_ close. Despite the excruciating pain it caused him, he couldn't fight against their bond. He did love Kai, more than fit into his sense, but he was too late. He'd had his chance, but he had missed it. And now… Someone else had taken the place in Kai's heart he so hard wished he could've fit in.

" Yeah, of course", he heard Ray say, waking up from his thoughts.

Reluctantly he followed the others as they left the room. Just before he was out of the door he turned his head for a one last time, only to discover that it was a big mistake. As he saw the way Hilary had wrapped her arms around Kai, he felt his aching heart mash into pieces.

A/N: So, here it begins. How did you like? Oh, and don't forget to vote for your favorite couple!

Is it...

Hilary+Kai

Tyson+Kai

Or should I make Ray+Kai two-sided?

OR should I add a mysterious contestant number four? grins evilly

Enyways, thanks for reading! Remember to r&r!


	2. The battle begins

Three days passed, and Kai still remained locked up into his silence. His friends started to get seriously worried about him: he wouldn't eat, and according to Hilary's 'observations' (the girl slept in the same room with him, _only_ to keep an eye on him) he never slept either. And as time passed, the two people who more than anything in the world wanted him to come back, began to wonder if Kai was out of their reach.

At the brake of day four, Hilary slowly opened her eyes and yawned deeply, greeting the new winter-morning. After lying down for a long, blissful moment, she finally got up and startled as she found that Kai wasn't in his bead.

" Oh no…", she muttered, getting up faster than her head allowed her to. As soon as she got up, tough, her worry turned into a warm, relieved smile.

Kai was sitting on the window-sidle, intently drawing something to the sketchpad in his arms.

" Morning", she greeted and approached her friend slowly, worried that anything too fast might make him shift away. " What are you drawing?".

Kai looked a bit surprised as he looked at her, as if he'd just noticed her. She waited for a second, and as the boy made no move to stop her she leaned forward to see what he'd drawn. What she saw made her gasp.

" Oh my gosh! Kai, it's… it's beautiful!".

Actually, 'beautiful' wasn't even close to what her bewildered eyes witnessed. The sketch was about her sleeping, bathing in the almost unearthly morning-light coming from the window. Hilary found herself blushing by the way Kai had drawn her, as if she was something… divine. Not even in her wildest dreams had she imagined that Kai saw her that way, felt that strongly towards her.

She looked at him, a soft smile playing on her lips.

" Thank you", she whispered, unable to say anything else.

For a smallest of moments she saw a flicker of emotion, almost a hint of the fire she so very well remembered, in Kai's eyes as he looked at her. But then, with a loud scream coming from downstairs, it was gone, and Kai withdrew tightly back into himself.

Sighing miserably, she left the room, knowing that she wouldn't have any more contact on Kai that morning, and decided to go and check what the bozos – mainly Tyson – had been yelling about. As she walked down the stairs, she heard yelling.

" Don't be an idiot, Tyson!" Ray snarled. " You can't just…".

" I can't take it anymore!" Tyson yelled back. " I… I'm so sick of looking at them, you know! I'm going crazy here! I can't even look at them anymore!".

" Tyson, I'm sorry and I know how hard it must be, but…".

" You don't know a shit, Ray! You have Mariah, and there's nothing that could ever take her away from you! So don't you dare come to me and say that you know what I'm going through, 'cause it's bullshit!".

A loud slap was herd.

" Get a hold of yourself, Tyson!" Ray hissed. " If you really care about Kai, stop forcing him to go through your pain along with his own. You might think that he doesn't have a clue of what you're feeling, but thrust me, he does. Even now, he heard every single word you said, and it's killing him. _You're_ hurting him. So get over it! There are other people on this planet besides you, Tyson! Try to get it into that thick skull of yours, 'k?".

At this point, Hilary decided that it was time for her entry. Inhaling deeply, she stepped in the room. The first thing she noticed was a smashed vase on the floor, and she glared at Tyson accusingly.

" Would you like to explain how that happened?".

" To you, no", Tyson retorted and stormed pass her out of the room. Few seconds later a loud slam of door was heard.

Ray and Max looked at her apologetically.

" Don't, guys. I know Tyson. If he decides to go crazy about something, nothing can hold him

back", she said, trying desperately to smile.

" Guess you're right", Max sighed, scratching his head as he looked at the direction Tyson had just disappeared.

Doing her best to suppress the tears in her throat, Hilary gave a quick fake-smile, turned and started to leave the room.

" Hil, wait", Ray's voice suddenly stopped her. Turning her head, she saw a sad look upon the face of her friend. " I know you heard what I said to Tyson, and… I hope that you understand".

She frowned.

" Understand what?".

" That you're hurting Kai just as much as he is". Ray sighed heavily. " Look, I know how much you two care about him, but you should give Kai some time. He's been through a hell, and it's still not over. So slow down, before you end up braking him".

She felt rage bubbling in her veins.

_Who the hell does he think he is, saying things like that!_

Miraculously she managed to keep her cool.

" I'll help Kai, whatever it takes", she stated, frowning slightly. " But why do you care so much about him?".

She probably just imagined it, but for a slightest moment she thought she saw a look of pain and confusion on Ray's face.

" He's my friend. Why should I not care?" the cat-boy replied in a strange tone.

She shrugged, still unsure.

" Whatever you say".

Meanwhile, Tyson sat on the icy balcony, letting burning-hot tears roll over his cheeks. The words Ray had said bounded his head, making it hurt. Making his heart hurt, worse than ever before.

_You're hurting him._

" What does that jackass know?" he muttered.

Deep down, he couldn't wipe the words out of his head. If he really was hurting Kai, he would never be able to live with himself. Kai meant _everything_ to him, despite all they'd been through. Hurting Kai was way worse than hurting himself.

" Am I hurting you, _koi_?" he asked the snowflakes, eyes filled with hot tears.

Suddenly he yelped of frighten as a soft, cool hand landed on his shoulder. Turning his head to see who dared to disturb him his already wide eyes became even larger.

" K – Kai?" he choked.

First time since Kai's arrival, he saw a hint of the oh-so-familiar flames in the eyes of his love. He swallowed hard as they kept looking at each other in silence. After a long moment, Tyson finally gave in to the temptation and placed his hand softly on Kai's, which was still on his shoulder. He felt Kai shutter slightly under his touch, but the Phoenix didn't pull away. Getting even more courage from Kai's acceptance, he took the older boy's hand gently in his and squeezed it lightly, letting Kai now that he wasn't alone. Somewhere deep inside his mind, Kai seemed to understand the meaning behind this simple act of affection, since his auburn eyes softened, and Tyson felt his heart flutter as Kai squeezed his hand in return, lightly but firmly. Tyson felt tears burning in his eyes again, but this time they weren't ones of sadness. Not once during these moments of affection did their eye-contact shutter.

_Thank you, koi_, he wanted to whisper, looking deep into Kai's captivating eyes, but the words wouldn't come out. _I love you so much!_

Just as Kai opened his mouth to say something, the door opened, and, sinking deep into himself, Kai turned his gaze away and let go of Tyson's hand, making the bluenette's heart ache unbearably. Soon enough Tyson's pain turned into pure rage as he looked at the direction of the door to see who was the soon-to-be-dead intruder He met Hilary's gaze, which was just as pain-stricken as his.

" Kai wasn't in our room, so I came to look for him", she explained.

" Do as you please", he retorted, taking a one last glance on now empty-eyed Kai before storming inside.

With Tyson gone, Hilary sighed and walked up to Kai, wrapping her arms protectively around him. She felt deeply delighted as Kai relaxed under her touch. Despite all that was going on between Kai and Tyson, she wanted to believe that she was the only one allowed to touch the Phoenix this way.

" Let's go inside, 'k?" she whispered to his ear, pressing her forehead against his shoulder. " It's freezing in here".

A small gasp escaped her throat as she saw Kai nod in reply, for the first time reacting to being addressed. Hearing the said gasp, the boy looked at her, looking slightly confused, obviously wondering if there was something wrong about what he'd just done.

" Kai, no, it's okay!" she assured him, frantically trying to undo her mistake, and took the boy's hand in hers without thinking. " It's… It's good to see you… react".

Kai nodded again, making her heart flutter, and as the two looked at each other they both knew that a huge step had been taken.

Suddenly loud, running steps interrupted them, and just as Kai withdrew back into himself Max burst into the balcony, panting heavily.

" Hi – Hilary… There's… Something's… happened…", he panted.

She felt a tight, icy fist squeeze around her heart.

" What is it?" she asked, voice weak and small.

Breathing normally, Max looked at her, eyes filled with sadness that almost made her heart stop.

" Mr. Dickinson called. There's been an accident", the blonde replied, voice far more serious than she would've liked. " Your parents have been taken into a hospital".

After a couple of agonising hours, Hilary finally got some more information on her parents. The doctor she got on the line told her they'd be fine. They'd been in a car-crash, but both had been lucky. Her mom had a broken arm, her dad a minor concussion. Despite the good news, she decided to fly home. She had to see them with her own two eyes to be sure that they were okay. The only thing she felt hesitant about was Kai. How could she leave the boy alone with Tyson?

The room was dark as she looked at Kai's sleeping form, the boy had his back on her. Sighing quietly, she caressed his silky hair.

" I love you so much, you know?" she whispered in a choked, teary voice. " I… I don't want to loose you. I can't".

Without giving it a second thought, she lightly kissed his cheek, and nearly fell of the bed by surprise as he slowly turned his head and gently touched her cheek, eyes soft. She felt a small smile pull the corners of her lips as Kai's fingers delicately brushed away the few tears escaped to her cheek. Loosing herself into his auburn depths, she could feel for a first time in ages that the connection they once had was still out there, somewhere, despite everything that had happened. And nothing would ever brake it. Suddenly her happiness was tainted with a flash of sadness.

_If only he could remember…_

Kai frowned, obviously sensing her sudden gloom, and again she found herself smiling.

" I'm okay. Just thinking", she assured him, brushing his face with her fingers. " Go back to sleep, 'k? I'll be fine".

She could easily see how hard Kai struggled against the blissful sleep, but eventually it took the best of him and his eyelids slowly slipped shut. Being sure that he was asleep, she tenderly kissed his forehead.

" Good night, Phoenix", she whispered, snuggling closer to him, welcoming the warmth of his body, and wrapped her hands loosely around him.

Feeling herself extremely tired all of a sudden, she sighed contentedly, pressed her head against his chest and closed her eyes. Soon enough sleep claimed her.

Unbeknownst to Hilary, Kai was still awake. He slowly opened his sad eyes and kissed her hair.

" Good night", he whispered, then fell asleep for real.

* * *

Hilary's flight departed the following afternoon. The entire team, including Kai, was at the airport to wish her a safe journey.

" I'm sure your parents will be alright", Max assured her, smiling slightly.

" Yeah", Kenny joined. " Tell them we said hi, 'k?".

She nodded, smiling.

" I will", she promised, then looking at Ray, becoming solemn. " There's something I need to ask you. Alone".

Confused, the neko-jin nodded and, avoiding the curious looks, followed Hilary till they were far enough from their friends to avoid being heard.

" What's up?" he asked, having some dark ideas of what the girl might be up to.

His thoughts only became confirmed as he saw the look in her eyes when she looked at him.

" You know that I love Kai – a lot. And… I think that… that he's beginning to remember", she whispered.

His eyes became wide. Kai was remembering? Could it be?

" How can you know?".

" Last night, when I looked at him…". She shook her head, snorting. " You probably think that this some lame chick-stuff, but I know that I saw a hint of remembrance in his eyes. For few seconds, he looked at me just like he did before…". She shook her head again. " Forget it".

Seeing the pain in Hilary's eyes, Ray knew that he had to do or say something. Finally he chose to say the hardest of all.

" I'm sure he loves you", he whispered, feeling his heart shatter by each painful word. He had to wait for a long moment before he could speak more. " And to what you never asked me… Yes. I'll keep an eye on Tyson. I can't promise you anything, but I'll keep an eye on him".

Hilary looked deeply moved as she looked at him, smiling slightly. He nearly gasped from shock as she suddenly wrapped her hands tightly around him, giving him a fierce hug.

" Thanks Ray", she whispered. " You're a golden friend, you know that?".

Hearing the words, Ray shivered slightly in discomfort.

_If only she knew what a 'great' friend I truly am…_, he thought bitterly.

After a while they walked back to the others, who never asked a thing despite the obvious curiosity. Just when they stopped the announcement of Hilary's flight came. She looked at them all, even Tyson, smiling.

" I'll come back as soon as everything's settled, 'k?". She laughed. " I'll miss you all".

" And we'll miss you too, believe it or not", Tyson replied, with a half-smile on his face.

Sighing, Hilary took a one last glance at Kai, and surprised to find the boy looking back at her. The Phoenix had the same, furiously tender look upon his face she'd fallen in love with, and at that moment she could no longer hold herself back. Taking everyone – especially Kai – by surprise, she rushed over to him, and kissed him fervently on the lips. She wasn't sure if she felt a response or not, and at the moment it didn't even matter. As she reluctantly pulled away from him, she whispered something to his ear that had been captured inside her for far too long.

" I love you".

Having that said, she quickly turned around, unable to meet Kai's eyes, and rushed to the gate without taking a single glance at her friends.

Some time later, the gang, including Kai who finally seemed to be coming out of his shell, stood by the airport-window and watched as Hilary's plane rose to the clouds.

A huge mixture of emotions was running through their – especially determined Tyson's and confused Ray's – heads as they realised that Hilary had left. At that moment, only one thing was certain. The fight over the heart of the Russian had just begun. And there'd be no ties in this Tournament…

TBC.

* * *

A/N: So, how díd you like chapter two? Oh, and remember to vote! 


	3. Wounds

A/N: Thanks for feedback and votes, I would've never expected them to come this fast!Andan answer to the question... Yes, Ray DEFINITELY likes Kai. I just took that in a

bit more slowly so that you wouldn't drown to the fluffines. grin Anyways, Ray's feelings should become a bit more clear in this chapter, so...

Well, thanks again! Keep voting, people! At the moment, Hilary is winning the Russian... ;)

* * *

Two days after Hilary's departure, confused Tyson lay on the couch, eyes closed, trying desperately to clear his head.

After that one magical night when he and Kai became close for a short moment, he hadn't been able to reach the Russian at all. It was almost like Kai was keeping him away in safe distance on purpose. Had he not known his love better, he would've thought Kai was scared.

Tyson frowned. What if Kai _was_ afraid of him? The Phoenix had every reason to be. Gosh, the wounds Tyson had given him… They were unbearable, unforgivable. And that all had happened for his own stupidity.

_I had his heart_, the thought bitterly. _He gave it to me so completely, so freely, and I went and smashed it._

" I love you", he whispered, painfully aware of the fact that Kai couldn't hear him. " If only there was a way, any way, to undo what I did to you… I'd do anything…".

Suddenly he almost yelled of frighten as he felt that he was no longer alone. Panicked thoughts started running through his head. Had someone heard him? Was his secret out? His eyes shot open, and he couldn't help gasping as he saw Kai standing on the doorway, looking confused. The look in Kai's eyes told clearly that he'd heard the desperate words Tyson had whispered.

Tyson gulped. What would the Russian do? Would he do anything?

For a longest time they just stared at each other, both feeling the old wounds reopen. It almost felt like time had stopped.

" Tyson…", Kai finally whispered, so quietly that the bluenette almost missed it.

They both had tears in their eyes, and at that moment Tyson knew painfully clearly that he'd lost Kai. For the look in the Phoenix's crimson, pain-stricken eyes told clearly that he remembered, remembered every single wound Tyson had given him.

_/ Kai's eyes opened slowly, and at first all he saw was thick darkness. Then he heard the sound of someone packing and frowned._

" _Granger?" he muttered sleepily, turning his head to see the bluenette packing, having his back on him. " What the hell do you think you're doing?"._

" _I'm sorry". Tyson's voice was strained, filled with unshed tears. " I didn't mean to wake you up"._

_He frowned again, pulling himself into a sitting position. _

" _Where are you going?"._

_Tyson sighed, zipping his suitcase. _

" _I just… I need to go away… for a while. To think", the Dragon muttered. _

_Kai felt an ice-cold hand squeezing his heart._

" _For how long?" he asked in a choked voice._

" _I… I just don't know", Tyson muttered, but Kai knew the real answer._

' _I may never come back'._

_Then, without saying a words, Tyson lifted his bag and rushed towards the door of their shared room. But Kai wanted one more answer, and he was much faster than Tyson. With a speed that took them both by surprise he graphed a hold of Tyson's wrist. The Dragon stopped, but refused to meet his eyes. In the pail light of moon that shone through the window, Kai could see tears glittering on Tyson's cheeks, which only made his own pain grow._

" _Why?" he asked after a long silence, barely getting the words out. " Why are you…?"._

_Tyson bowed his head a little, and Kai could no longer see his face at all for the dark shadow his cap created._

" '_Cause I don't think I love you anymore", Tyson whispered quietly, but Kai heard the words perfectly._

_Kai felt like his entire world was falling apart as he slowly let go of Tyson's hand and watched the Dragon slip out of the door, closing it quietly behind him._

_With the door closed, both boys surrendered to their tears, feeling pain beyond human understanding tear their hearts. /_

Tyson opened his mouth to say something, anything, as Kai took a step back, face unnaturally pale. But finally he came to the conclusion that no words would do. He'd hurt Kai too badly, and would do even more damage if he'd make the Phoenix stay. So he looked helplessly, tears running down his cheeks once more, as Kai turned and rushed upstairs. After a moment a loud slam of door was heard, which made Tyson's tears fall even harder.

" Oh Kai…", he sobbed, closing his eyes in pain that seemed to rip him apart. " I… I'm so sorry…".

As he heard the door slam, Ray knew immediately that something was badly wrong. Fearing the worst, he quietly knocked the door of Kai's room.

" Kai?". No reply came. " I'm coming in, 'k?".

Slowly, fearing Kai's possible reaction to his intruding, he slid the door open, and felt his heart brake for what he saw. Kai was sitting on the floor, crying harder than he'd ever seen anyone cry before, arms wrapped protectively around his legs. The before so strong Phoenix rocked himself back and forth, like a small child trying to calm down.

A sudden flicker of rage filled Ray. He'd seen Kai like this before. And he knew that the cause of Kai's tears was once again the same. Again he was the one who had to gather the pieces of the broken Phoenix. He grit his teeth to keep himself from screaming.

_Tyson… I'm gonna kill him for this…_

Sighing, he decided that at the moment helping Kai was much more useful than killing Tyson. Slowly, trying his best not to scare Kai, he approached the broken boy and bent down to him. It was just then Kai seemed to notice him, and the Russian's auburn eyes were widened with pain and surprise as he looked at him. Ray smiled sadly, and brushed Kai's teary cheek with his fingers.

" Sh…", he whispered, pulling Kai into a tight and comforting embrace. " It's okay… Sh, don't cry… Everything's gonna work out…".

And that was the way they stayed for a long time, Kai crying his pain into Ray's shoulder and Ray trying his hardest to keep all his pain and emotions inside.

After thinking about it for a moment, Tyson decided to go and check on Kai. What he saw wasn't what he'd expected. The bang of jealousy was harder than he'd wished as he saw Kai in Ray's protective arms. He frowned in confusion as he saw the look upon Ray's face. He'd only seen that look before when the cat-boy was near Mariah.

_What the hell is going on!_

TBC.


	4. Answers

It'd been five days from Hilary's leaving. Kai was absently aware of the fact that the girl would be back the next day, Christmas Eve, as he stood in front the window of his room, holding a mug of hot coffee in his hands, oblivious to the fact that it was burning his fingers. He was simply too confused to notice.

After the painful memory he received of Tyson telling him he longer loved him, he hadn't spent almost a second with the bluenette. He couldn't, it was almost unbearable to even look at the young Dragon. Kai hated the feeling of weakness that kept hunting him. He'd always been strong, he knew that even tough he couldn't remember much. But all the emotions in him that just wouldn't leave… God how he wished that he could just forget about Tyson, be happy with Hilary! The girl obviously loved him, and he returned the feeling with all his heart, but…

He let out a desperate sigh and stared at the snowflakes, slowly falling towards the white ground. As much as Kai hated to admit it, he almost wished that he could be alone in Christmas. Since the day he woke up in the hospital six months ago, he hadn't gotten a single moment of peace. And with all the painful memories returning to him, he desperately wanted a moment to think, to collect himself before he'd fall apart.

Shaking his head to wake up from his thoughts, Kai's finger unconsciously brushed something close to his furiously beating heart, finding cold metal. Lowering his gaze, he noticed a small hump on his shirt, which he identified to be a beautiful ring made of gold and silver. A sing of promise

given by Tyson for over a year ago.

Tears made their way to Kai's confused eyes as he held his hand on the ring.

" Why?" he whispered. " Why did you hurt me?".

Downstairs, the mood was far above tense as Mr. Dickinson, to whom Max and Kenny had called when they ran out of ideas of how to keep Tyson and Ray away from each other's throats, looked sternly at the four boys in front of him.

" Look you two, I understand that you care about Kai deeply, and so do I! But this isn't helping him!" the man told calmly but determinedly. " How do you think it makes him feel to see the team fall apart because of him!". He sighed. " Look boys, you have to get yourself together. Kai's been… wounded, badly. I don't wish to see you, his _friends_, hurt him even further".

Tyson and Ray both fell into deep silence, remembering perfectly the night almost seven months ago. The night that changed everything…

/ _Rain and thunder masked the loud shouts, heard from the Russian hotel-room. Inside, the rest of the Bladebrakers watched in deep worry as Tyson and Kai had another one of their 'collisions'._

" _Granger, I couldn't care less if you broke your damn blade, but if you keep going on like that, we can say goodbye to World-championships! What the hell do you think you're doing!" Kai roared, looking at furious Tyson, who held his smoking blade in his hand._

" _For your information, 'captain', this is called practising", Tyson hissed. " What kind of a captain are you anyways! All you do is yell and scream at us! A REAL captain would encourage us instead of crushing us!". At this point, Tyson knew perfectly well that he was crossing the line, but he couldn't stop himself. " You know what? Go to hell! We'd do MUCH better without you!". _

" _Tyson!" Max gasped, eyes widened with disbelief._

_Kai's eyes squinted and he squeezed his hands into tight fists. Anyone could tell how hard he was trying to keep his cool. Amazingly, not even for a second did his cold mask slip. But Kai's eyes… They told clearly how much Tyson's words had hurt him, and Tyson mentally cursed himself, loudly, wishing harder than ever that he could take his words back. But it was too late._

" _Says a guy who disappeared for eight months", Kai retorted, looking at Tyson with stone-cold eyes. With that, Kai turned around and headed towards the door. " Well, see how much better you'll do without me, 'cause I'm no longer a part of the team. Bye"._

_And before anyone could do or say anything, the door slammed shut. As Tyson looked at the door, eyes filled with tears, the rest of the team looked at him with stern eyes._

" _Tyson, you insensitive, selfish IDIOT!" Hilary yelled, only Max and Ray's strong arms keeping her from jumping at the bluenette._

" _I can't believe you just said that", Ray commented, eyes filled with disappointment and disbelief._

_Tyson blinked, trying his best to keep his already running tears from escaping._

" _I… I'm sorry… I just… He…". He sniffed. " I'm so sorry!"._

" _Why are you saying it to us!" Hilary screamed. " Do you have any idea of how badly you hurt Kai, huh? Do you!"._

_Tyson couldn't answer for the tears that seemed to choke him. It was silent for a long time._

" _Guys… Should we go after Kai or something? I mean, he was really upset", Max finally asked, letting go of Hilary as it seemed that her worse rage had passed._

" _Knowing Kai, I don't think we should". Kenny sighed heavily. " He needs a moment alone. Besides, he would kill us if we'd ever find him"._

_Reluctantly, they all agreed, without any idea of how bad mistake it'd be…_

_As everyone else went to bed, Tyson stayed awake, unable to sleep with Kai missing. It was almost three in the morning as he got up from the couch he'd occupied, and sighed heavily as he walked up to the window. He frowned at what he saw. It was pouring rain._

_Kai, where the heck are you, he thought, sick of worry. Please, come home… Please… I'm sorry!_

_He sighed as he looked down the street, receiving no trace of the familiar silvery bangs. Suddenly _

_he literally jumped of frighten as the phone rang, and sprinted to answer. Maybe it was Kai!_

" _Hello?" he replied, voice filled with hope._

" _Is this the Bladebrakers?" a confused female-voice with a thick Russian accent asked._

_He sighed once more, all hope leaving him._

" _Yeah, this is Tyson. Who am I speaking to?"._

" _I'm Dr. Irina Volkova. A boy we recognised as a member of the Bladebrakers was brought in the hospital two hours ago"._

_Tyson gasped, eyes widened with panic. At this point, his team-mates had also awoken and started gathering around him, eyes filled with worry and question. Tyson didn't even notice them._

" _Oh my God… Kai…", he whispered._

_Fifteen minutes later the entire team rushed forward on the hallways of the hospital, making their way towards the ICU Dr. Volkova had advised them to go to. As they got there, they found a woman in her thirties, her long, almost white hair in a ponytail. She quickly turned around when hearing their steps and looked them with her piercing, ice-blue eyes._

" _Are you the Bladebrakers?" she asked._

" _Yeah", Tyson replied, panting for the run. " Where's Kai? How is he?"._

_Dr. Volkova sighed and motioned them to follow her aside, out of the other people's way. The look in her eyes gave them a loud warning of what was to come._

" _Your friend has serious injuries. He's in a surgery right know, the doctors are doing all they can to stop the internal bleeding. He also has a broken arm and a severe head-injury". _

_For a longest time none of the shocked teens could utter a word._

" _That's… That's a bad thing… Right?" Max finally whispered, almost in tears._

_Dr. Volkova nodded, sad look upon her face._

" _Yes. I'm sorry, I wish I had better news". She motioned towards the chairs. " If you want to, you can sit there to wait. The surgery should be over soon enough. I'll keep you posted"._

" _Thanks", Ray muttered._

_And so they sat and waited, helpless to do anything to help Kai. Hours passed by, to them they felt like days. Finally, in the hours of the bright morning, Dr. Volkova walked up to them, looking tired. They all stood up, preparing themselves for what was to come._

" _How is he?" Hilary asked, anxiousness sharpening her tone._

" _Kai lost a lot of blood, and unfortunately fell into a coma". She sighed, looking at them. " I think you should sit down, I afraid there's something I haven't told you"._

_They obeyed, fearing the worst. What could be more horrible than hearing that Kai was in a coma!_

" _Your friend was attacked, viciously. As his injuries probably told you, he was severely beaten up. According to his bruises, he did everything he could to defend himself, but there were too many of them attacking on him". She sighed, closing her eyes for a moment. " But that isn't the worst part". She gulped. " Once he wakes up, if he does, he won't be the same person you've learned to know"._

_They all looked at her, stunned by shock and disbelief. They'd prepared themselves for a lot, but this… This was too much. This was a nightmare. _

" _Oh my God…", Hilary finally whispered, burying her face into her hands. They could all see her shoulders shaking._

_For a longest time, nothing more was said._

" _When should he wake up?" Ray finally asked in a choked voice, obviously holding back tears._

" _I'm sorry, but… We don't know. Only time will tell", Dr. Volkova replied sadly._

_Tyson blinked, eyes stinging with tears he wouldn't let fall._

" _Can we see him?" he asked, looking at the doctor pleadingly. " Please?"._

" _I'm sorry, but I afraid I can't let you in before Kai's stabilised". She smiled sadly, looking at the exhausted teens before her. " You should all go home and try to get some rest. I know that this has been a hard day for you, but staying here won't help your friend. I'll call you if anything happens"._

_Reluctantly they did as ordered._ /

Silence filled the hotel-room as everyone remembered that night.

Even tough Kai had eventually woken up, nothing was the same. Due the head-injury, Kai had lost his memory. For a small part it was fortunate, since he couldn't remember the events of the horrible night, but it seemed that along with his memory, Kai had also lost himself. No amount of therapy-sessions seemed to help the Russian, and day by day they could see Kai fade away.

" What should we do?" Ray finally spoke out, looking at Mr. Dickinson with confused eyes. " I want to help him, I really do. But how?".

Mr. Dickinson sighed.  
" I honesty don't know", he admitted. " When I brought Kai here, I thought being with his friends would make him remember, bring him back. But… I'm sorry to say, but it seems that being here only makes his state grow worse".

The gang was shocked. Did this mean…?

" Are… Are you taking him away… from us?" Tyson asked in a wheezing voice, eyes wide.

Mr. Dickinson nodded, looking more sad than they'd ever seen anyone look before.

" I'm sorry boys, but if things continue the way they have so far, I afraid I'm out of options", he told them, voice filled with gloom. " I can promise you a week, but then… I afraid he'll have to be relocated into somewhere more suitable".

His sadness, however, did not deserve much appreciation from Tyson. The Dragon shot up from the couch, scaring everyone, face red with pure rage. He pointed at the elder man.  
" I know that you're supposed to be some kind of a big-shot, but I'm not going to watch you taking Kai away! I'm not going to loose him!" he yelled at the top of his lungs, shaking all over.

" Tyson…", Max begun, but was soon cut off.

" I'm not going to apologise, _I_ have no reason to!" he hissed, looking at Max, and then turned his cross gaze back to shocked Mr. Dickinson. " I hate you! If you take him away from me, I will never talk to you or blade for you again!".

With that, Tyson stormed off to upstairs, and soon enough the loudest bang of a door they'd ever witnessed was heard. The people left in the room looked at each other with shocked and puzzled looks plastered on their faces.

What would happen next? How could they carry on?

The same night, after letting out the worst of his fumes and making sure that Mr. Dickinson had actually left, Tyson surprised himself by ending up to the door of Kai's room. After hesitating for a longest time, he quietly knocked.

" Kai?" he whispered, placing his hand on the door-handle. " You gonna throw me with something if I come in?".

No reply came, and, still hesitant, he inched the door. He saw Kai standing by the window, having his back on the Dragon, arms crossed over his chest. Quietly Tyson sneaked in and closed the door behind him.

" I'm not sure if I should show you off or kiss you".

Tyson was startled by the words, by the fact that Kai actually spoke to him. Despite the words, he felt strangely honoured by the fact that Kai had chosen to speak to him.

" I think we have a lot to talk about", he muttered, hoping that Kai would keep on talking.

He felt his heart ache as Kai turned around. His auburn eyes were so filled with pain and confusion that it hurt Tyson like hell.

" Kai…".

" Why did you hurt me?". The question was more pain-filled than angry. " I don't remember much, but I do remember that you tore me apart". Anger seemed to take over Kai, his eyes turned slightly more red and seemed to be flaming. " How could you do that to me! Didn't you love me?".

Tyson felt a tear slide down his cheek, but ignored it. Slowly, not willing to upset Kai any further, he took a step forward and took Kai's hand in his. The Phoenix tried free himself from the grip, but Tyson refused to give in. He wasn't going to let go of Kai, not ever again.

" I did love you", he whispered, looking deep into the ginger depths. " I still do".

Kai looked at him, eyes filled with shock, and Tyson felt the Russian's hand quiver in his.

" Then… Why?" Kai asked in a choked voice, eyes almost in tears. " Why the hell did you put me through that if you loved me!".

" Because I was an idiot", Tyson replied bluntly, crying heavily. " I ran away from the thing I cared about the most. And I have regretted it ever since".

For a long time it seemed that time was no longer working in the small room as the two of them looked at each other, holding hands. Finally Tyson wrapped his arms carefully but firmly around Kai, holding the Phoenix close. He felt Kai quiver uncontrollably as the boy returned the hug. They were both crying.

" I'm so sorry, Kai, I'm so sorry…", he whispered into Kai's ear. " But I promise that I'll never hurt you again. You'll never have to suffer because of me again".

" I hope you'll keep that promise", Kai murmured. " Because if you won't, I'll never forgive you".

Slowly and hesitantly, they broke apart slightly to take a look at each other. Eventually, like in a slowed-motion, they leaned in and their lips met in a soft, tender kiss. They could both taste the tears as the kiss deepened, revealing the deep longing they'd both felt for so long.

TBC.

* * *

A/N: Don't blow your tops, people, that ending DOES NOT mean that this is becoming a TyKa fic... yet, at least.Btw, before you plan on killing Kai or anything, remember that he's an amnesiac and he's not with Hilary at the moment (for understandable reasons).

Anyways, the next episode reveals what happens when Hilary comes back.. evil grin

Well, hope you liked it. Keep voting!


	5. Memories

A/N: Thank you all for feedback and actually bothering to read this story! I hope you'll like the new parts... Btw, I never thought someone would read this. (grin)

* * *

In the morning after, pail rays of sun tickled Tyson's face as he gradually opened his midnight-blue eyes. He greeted the new day with a wide smirk, and looked at the sleeping angel he held in his arms after such a long waiting. Still grinning, he landed a soft kiss to the grey bangs.

" Merry Christmas, Kai", he whispered, caressing the soft hair of his love. " C'mon, it's time to wake up".

With a content sigh, Kai turned to face him and slowly opened his eyes. Tyson's grin turned into a smile as he saw that the look of pain in Kai's eyes had been replaced with softness. Unable to hold himself back, he caressed Kai's beautiful face. The Phoenix shuttered a bit under the touch, but didn't pull away, which made Tyson feel better than ever before. His happiness turned into utter joy as Kai closed his eyes and pressed his warm body closer to him, landing his forehead against his T-shirt covered chest, wrapping his arms gently around Tyson's waist. Smiling gently, Tyson pulled Kai closer to him in return, letting the broken boy know how much he cared.

They'd actually done a lot of talking the night before. They'd agreed to take things _very_ slowly, which meant that they'd only slept together, clothes on. They'd also agreed not to do any kissing before Kai's head was slightly more clear. They'd have to work out their friendship before even considering moving further. Tyson couldn't complain. He'd been waiting for Kai for so long that even holding hands was a heaven to him.

Suddenly a knock coming from the door downstairs forced them to pull away from each other, and reluctantly they abandoned the warmth of bed and each other, heading towards the stairs. Tyson froze to the halfway of the stairs as he saw the snow-covered figure of Hilary standing on the door. The brunette, however, didn't seem to notice him at all. Her widened eyes were locked to Kai, who was standing two stairs behind Tyson.

" Oh my God…", she gasped. " Kai… You… They got you out of your room!".

" Wish I could take the honour, but I believe it was Tyson's doing", Max informed, smiling widely as he saw the team-captain. " 'Bout time to join us! We've missed you".

" Hn", Kai commented, causing a series of smiles.

At this point, Hilary couldn't hold herself back any longer. Ignoring the fact that she still had her snowy shoes and jacket on, she sprinted to Kai with a speed that took them all by surprise and wrapped her arms tightly around him, burying her face into his chest. Deeply confused, Kai returned the hug.

" Gosh, Kai! You have no idea of for how long I've been waiting for this!". Hilary's voice was muted with sobs of happiness. " I'm so glad you're taking a step forward. I've missed you so much…".

Kai blinked in confusion, burying his face into Hilary's soft hair that held a sent of cinnamon. He squeezed his eyes tightly shut to hold back the tears.

_Damnit, Hilary!_, he cursed mentally in pain. _Why are you making me feel like this!_

Suddenly, a sharp flash of memory made pain shoot mercilessly through his head. A quiet moan escaped his lips.

/ _Lightning cast it's pale light on the figure standing in front of a window, fiery eyes filled with pain and anger. Feeling hurt flash through him again, Kai let his fingers brush the ring hanging around his neck. It was the day he and the Dragon were supposed to celebrate the promise that jewellery represented, but to Kai's great dismay, it wasn't possible. The promise had been broken. Tyson was gone, had been for six months already. And by each passing day without his Dragon, Kai felt a piece of him turn into ice for the lack of warmth Tyson had always given him. He knew that if he wouldn't do something soon, he'd turn into ice completely. _

" _Kai?"._

_A soft female voice startled Kai out of his thoughts. Not letting any feelings show, he peered over his shoulder to see Hilary standing on the door. The girl looked tentative as she stepped in and soundlessly closed the door behind her. He, in the other hand, turned to look out of the window again, admiring the way the constant slashes of lightning made the raindrops shine and sparkle_

" _What are you doing here?" he bit out. He didn't really want to drive the girl away, but he feared that if he'd let her stay, the ice taking over him would take her over too._

_Sighing, she took a few steps closer, brushing his back with her fingers. The touch made him flinch._

" _Kai, please, let me help you. Let us help you", she whispered in a desperate, quiet voice he could barely make out. " I know how much Tyson hurt you, but you can't stay locked in here forever. It doesn't make him come back. It doesn't take away your pain"._

" _How the hell do you know!" he snapped, looking at Hilary, eyes burning with hurt. " Has anyone ever done something like this to you, huh? Has anyone ever hurt you this painfully?"._

_Despite the fact that the harsh words probably hurt Hilary, she smiled softly, taking his hand in hers. The touch seemed to burn him and he tried to break free, but Hilary wouldn't let go._

" _No, I've never been hurt like this", she admitted. " But I can see what it does to you". She looked at his hand squeezed in hers. It was trembling uncontrollably, and so was he. She looked into his eyes again, gaze filled with determination. " I won't hurt you, Kai. I would never do to you what Tyson did. You can thrust me, I swear"._

_He hesitated. Everyone he'd ever trusted had betrayed him, hurt him. Why would this girl be any different?_

_Seeming to read his mind, Hilary stepped closer and let go of his hand, wrapping her hands protectively around him, placing her forehead against his shoulder._

" _I care about you, Kai", she whispered. " And I'll do whatever it takes to prove you that not everyone wants to hurt you. I'm going to fix you"._

" _I'm not broken", he muttered, feeling tears sting his eyes. He paused for a long time, noticing that Hilary wasn't going to let go of him. " What it I'll hurt you? I… I don't want to…"._

" _Sh…". She pulled away from him slightly and pressed her finger against his lips. " I can take care of myself". She grasped his hand tightly, desperately, looking deep into his eyes. " Please, let me through. I won't hurt you. Just… Please. Don't push me away, 'cause I'm not going anywhere"._

_Kai felt his entire body quiver as the brunet carefully bent even closer, eyes closed, and pressed her lips softly against his, caressing his face with her free hand as the other squeezed his hand even more tightly. Gradually, recovering from the first shock, he found himself returning the kiss with all the passion he'd locked inside himself, and felt the ice inside him slowly melt away. As the kiss continued he felt tears run down his cheek. It seemed as if his heart had been stopped for a long time and was just now beginning to remember how to beat again. Fresh, new blood boiled his veins as the kiss became even deeper, and subconsciously they wrapped their hand tightly around each other, giving in to the fire and passion between them._ /

Kai grimaced in pain and pressed both of his hands against his head as he pulled away from Hilary, trying to keep more flashes from coming with a sheer power of will. The others looked at him worriedly.

" Kai? You 'k?" Ray asked, took a step forward and then stopped, hesitating.

Kai gasped and squeezed his eyes tightly shut as the pain grew even harder, and slumped on the stairs with a quiet whimper, still holding his head in his hands. Unfortunately, even more memories were to come.

/ _Only the light coming from the fireplace lightened and warmed the room as two extremely content figures lay on the bed, the Phoenix holding the Dragon in his arms. Both were exhausted, but refused to give in to sleep, it was almost as if they feared that this was all going to fade would they fall asleep. Both had their eyes closed._

" _Kai…", Tyson finally murmured, taking the chance of braking the magic._

" _Hmm?"._

" _There's something I want to give you". _

_Kai forced his eyes halfway open, and tiredly looked on as Tyson pulled himself off the bed and tossed over to his bag on the other side of the room, beginning to rummage through it. Amused, Kai marked how cold it was without Tyson keeping him warm and pulled the covers tighter around him. After a while Tyson seemed to find what he was looking for, hiding something into his fist, and, smirking widely, walked back to him and slipped under the covers, restoring the warmth Kai had been missing. A content smirk made it's way to Kai's lips as Tyson pressed himself tightly against him and kissed him demandingly, passionately. Kai felt Tyson's hand caress his face softly. Gosh how much he loved that touch! Feeling almost as if he was on fire, he leaned in and returned the kiss, letting Tyson know exactly how much the Dragon meant to him. After a while that seemed way too short they departed, needing air, both gasping quietly. Tyson had a dazed expression on his face as the bluenette touched his face again, gently, and deep inside his mind Kai remarked that Tyson was the only person he'd ever let touch him like that. The only one he trusted enough._

" _Gosh Kai…", Tyson whispered, looking deep into his eyes. " You're so perfect…"._

_Kai smirked a little._

" _We both know that's rubbish", he commented, but gently kissed Tyson's forehead anyway, subconsciously pulling the boy closer._

_For a long time they laid in silence, just looking at each other, enjoying the warmth they gave each other, enjoying the fact that they were together._

" _I thought you had something you wanted to give me", Kai finally reminded, cocking an bemused eyebrow. " Should I be worried?"._

" _Guess you'll just have to thrust me, koi", the bluenette commented. " Now, close your eyes"._

_Hesitantly, Kai let his eyes slowly slip shut. After a second he felt Tyson place something around his neck, and felt a soft kiss land on his lips._

" '_K. You can look now"._

_He slowly opened his eyes, and felt a warm flutter in his heart as he saw the extremely beautiful, probably unique ring, hanging around his neck in a silvery necklace. A half of it was gold, another half silver. It had something engraved on it in Japanese. Kai smiled slightly, knowing what it meant._

' _Yours, now and for always'._

_He looked at Tyson, holding his hand on the ring._

" _You mean it?" he asked._

_Tyson nodded, eyes filled with sparkle he'd never seen in them before._

" _Yeah", the Dragon replied, nodding slightly. " But only if you want it too"._

_Kai's answer was a soft, loving kiss on Tyson's lips. Ending the kiss, he whispered into Tyson's ear in Japanese._

" _I love you", he said for the fist time in his life, holding the Dragon close. " Always". _

_And with that, the promise had been made. The promise that was to tear them apart…_ /

As the memory ended, Kai felt a hand on his shoulder. For some reason the touch burned him unbearably, and he let out a small cry.

" Don't… touch me…", he managed to choke before the pain washed over him and, still holding his head, he fell back, only to be caught into protective arms.

" Sh…", someone whispered, and the arms wrapped around him, pulling him close to a warm chest. The person holding him was stroking his hair softly. For some odd reason, a faint, somehow familiar sent of eucalyptus the person holding him had seemed to calm him down a little. " It'll be okay… Sh… It's okay…".

Another memory made Kai whimper and snuggle closer to the comforting person holding him.

/ _" Dragoon, teach him a lesson!" Tyson commanded, eyes burning. _

_The blade rushed forward and crushed against another, causing a shower of sparks._

" _Dranzer, defeat him! NOW!" Kai yelled, feeling blood boiling in his veins._

_The blades collided again, causing a magnificent blow and a burst of blinding white light. The two had to cover their eyes for a while. When they were able to see again, they could see that both blades were still spinning, glowing slightly. In a unison, they called the blades back and cached them, looking at each other. Both were smirking from the rush of adrenaline and emotion._

" _Wow!". Tyson was the one the speak first, sounding like he was out of breath. " That was… That was AWESOME!"._

_Kai shrugged, not allowing himself to admit how much he appreciated the battle._

" _Yeah, whatever". He turned around, starting to walk away. " Have to admit it tough… Your skills may have improved"._

_Tyson smirked widely, looking at the distancing back of his captain. A deep flush of pride washed over him. That was pretty much the fist compliment Kai had ever given to anyone. And he, Tyson Granger, was the one who received it._

_Whether they admitted it to themselves just then or not, one thing was obvious to anyone. In some miraculous way, during that marvellous battle the boys had fallen in love with each other. That was the day their story truly began._ /

With another painful memory, Kai drifted into comforting darkness.

/ _Kai opened his eyes slowly, blinking them as he met the dim light. Feeling drowsy, he checked his surroundings and found that he was sitting in a rest-chair in the library of his grandfather's mansion that now belonged to him. A warm blanket had been placed over him._

_Funny, he thought, bemused. I don't remember getting a blanket._

_Just then he remember the light, and lifted his gaze. He smiled as he saw Hilary flipping through some book from the bookshelf, her back on him. Yawning slightly, he pulled himself up and walked up to the girl, kissing her neck. Hilary jumped a little of frighten, but relaxed when seeing him._

" _Stop sneaking up on me, Hiwatari", she pouted, giving him a kiss on the cheek. " It's rude"._

" _Hn", he commented, wrapped his arms loosely around her waist and pulled her close, peering over her shoulder to see what she was reading. He was taken by surprise as he noticed that the book she was reading was in Russian. " Never knew you could speak Russian"._

" _I'm not too good at it", she admitted, put the book away and turned around, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face into his chest. It was a gesture Kai allowed only when they were alone, a sing of how much he meant for the girl. " Thanks for inviting me here. I know it must be hard"._

_Kai had came to Russia to take care of some paperwork concerning his grandfather and his possessions. That meant that he had to face the dark shadows of his past once more. Since he and Hilary had been together for a month, Kai had, after a long hesitation, chosen to ask her if she wanted to come along. She hadn't hesitated for a single moment._

_He shrugged._

" _It's okay". He kissed her forehead, another thing he allowed only when they were alone. " You make it easier, you know?"._

_She smiled and closed her eyes, holding him even closer. _

" _I love you", she whispered, saying it aloud for a first time. " Never forget about that"._

" _I won't. Never", he promised, burying his face into her silky hair. " Love you too"._ /

As Kai slowly opened his eyes, he sighed in relief as he found that his headache was gone. He was pleased by the fact that the room was darkened. Light, even a slight one, would've given him another headache for sure. Carefully, expecting another attack of memories, he rubbed his face with both hands, trying to remember what had happened. All he could remember was someone holding him, and the sweet, familiar sent of eucalyptus…

" Morning", a soft voice suddenly greeted him.

Startled, he shot up, only to notice that it was a big mistake. Dizziness and nausea made him growl lowly and bury his head into his hands.

" Hey, be careful!" the same voice told him, sounding worried, and again a pair of arms wrapped around him, holding him tenderly. " Are you alright? What happened?".

Blinking, he turned to see the one holding him. It was Hilary, and immediately a deep flash of quilt shot through him.

" I… I'm sorry", he whispered, surprised to find that his voice was thin and weak.

Hilary frowned.

" What for?".

Tears stung his eyes as he brushed Hilary's face with his fingers, but he refused to let them fall.  
" I never kept my promise", he whispered, looking into her eyes. " I forgot that you loved me".

At first he was worried when he saw tears well into Hilary's eyes, but relaxed when a soft, warm smile make it's way to her lips.

" I'll never let you forget about it again", she promised, resting her forehead against his, taking his hand gently into hers.

Overwhelmed by the words, he couldn't immediately stop her as she leaned in to kiss him, but finally denied her by pressing his finger softly on her lips. The look of deep hurt in her eyes stung him, but he new that this was the best for them both. With him being this messed up, this would be too much, too soon. It'd only hurt them both.

" Not yet", he whispered softly.

Hilary nodded, deep in her heart knowing that he was right. Eventually a faint smile made it's way to her lips.  
" Merry Christmas", she whispered.

He surprised as he found himself returning the smile.

" Right back at you".

Tyson, who'd came to check up on Kai, froze to the slightly open door as he saw Kai in Hilary's arms, the smiles playing on both of their faces. Tyson felt his heart almost freeze of pain and jealousy.

_Well, it seems that you're in good hands now_, he thought sullenly, looking at his love. _With someone better than me._

And with that he turned away from the painful sight and quickly headed towards his room, in vain trying to hold back his tears.


	6. Presents

" Wake up guys! WAKE UP!".

Max's way too perky voice cruelly pulled the rest of the gang into reality.

" Someone should've hidden those damn candies from him…", Tyson muttered darkly, cautiously peaking from under his covers to see the clock on his bedside-table. " Damnit, Max! Do you realise that it's ten am! Some of us would appreciate getting some sleep!".

He yelped of frighten as someone jumped at him, laughing.

" Don't be such a spoilsport, Tyson!" Max ordered, still laughing, while getting off him. " C'mon, it's CHRISTMAS! I wanna open up my presents!".

Sighing in defeat, Tyson reluctantly abandoned his warm, cosy bed and got up, yawning and stretching. Heading towards the door, he winced as he heard Max's chipper babbling from downstairs.

_This'll be a long day_, he decided, stepping into the cold hall. He cursed loudly as his feet touched the ice-cold floor. _If Mr. Dickinson really wanted to send us here in the middle of nowhere, why the hell couldn't he pay for proper heating!_

" Someone's in a good mood". The sound of Hilary's cheerful voice made him scowl.

" I knew that I should've stayed in bed…", he muttered, so quietly that even Hilary couldn't hear him. Turning his head, he noticed that Hilary was alone and frowned. " Where's Kai?".

" Dunno". Hilary shrugged. " He was already gone when I woke up. He'd left a note that said he had some things to take care of".

Frowning, Tyson shrugged as well and headed downstairs, followed by Hilary. What _things_ did Kai have to take care of? Should he worry?

" There you are! We thought you'd sneak out of this!" Kenny, who'd for once abandoned his laptop, greeted them.

" Not in million years!" Hilary replied with a wide smirk, jumping on the couch next to Ray. " So, should we get started?".

" What about Kai?" Ray protested, frowning. " Where is he anyways?".

" Taking care of _things_", Tyson informed darkly. " He should know better than sneaking out on us".

" Well, it's progress that he actually goes out, right?" Hilary commented, smiling. " We'll just have to let him remember how to live again".

Tyson didn't bother replying.

" Heyyyyyyy, can I _now_ open up my presents?" Max whined. " I've been waiting for so long that it's killing me!".

" As long as it makes you shut up", Tyson promised with a deep sigh.

Letting out a wide range of painfully shrill screams of joy, the blond jumped on the presents. After rummaging around for a while, he suddenly froze, staring at the five delicately wrapped presents in front of him.

" These weren't here when I checked up on the presents last night", Max informed. Looking at one of the new presents that said _Max_, he recognised the neat handwriting. " Look, you guys! These are from Kai!".

The simple sentence caused a chaos as the rest of the team rushed over to see, nearly crushing poor Max. It took for quite a while for the hustle to settle.

" You guys… How could Kai buy us presents? I mean, he doesn't even remember us properly", Tyson finally asked, looking confused. " And when did he do it anyways? I thought he's been in his room 'til today".

" I guess we don't have to wonder where he went this morning anymore", Kenny commented.

" What are we waiting for?" Max enquired anxiously. " Let's wrap them open!".

When opening up the presents, they discovered that Kai probably remembered them lot better than they'd thought.

Max's eyes widened and a beam lightened up his face as he saw the beautiful set of carefully made, jade-green blade parts. Max strongly believed that with those parts, he and Draciel could beat anything.

Kenny let out a small gasp when seeing the contents of his presents. It was an amazing package of all computer-parts one could possibly imagine.

Ray, on the other hand, frowned as he heard a quit meow when wrapping his present open. He carefully removed the rest of the wrapping – and let out a small yelp of surprise as something attacked on him, making him fall on his back on the floor. Recovering from the shock a little, he carefully lifted his head and laughed at what he saw. On his stomach sat a small, extremely cute kitten, that looked at him with it's head tilted, seeming deeply confused. Still smiling, Ray got up into a sitting position and gently took the kitten in his arms. It let out a content meow while snuggling closer to him. Stroking it's fur, Ray took a moment to admire it. Its fur had the colour of purest white Ray had ever seen, decorated with occasional raven stripes. As the cat opened it's eyes and looked at him, Ray gasped. The eyes were golden, like ones of a tiger. Just like Ray's own! After staring at the distracting eyes for a moment, Ray shook his head and just then noticed something on the cat's neck. It was a black collar that had a golden-coloured, metallic ornament shape of a circle on it. Ray blinked his eyes in awe as he clenched the ornament between two fingers and saw a tiger that looked exactly like Driger plastered on it. Getting over the shock, he let go of the ornament and looked at the cat. It looked at him as if expecting something.

" You don't even have a name yet, do you?" he muttered absentmindedly, looking into the cat's eyes. It was female, that much he knew for being a neko-jin. Suddenly a wide smirk appeared on his lips, revealing his fangs. " Hi Kia".

It took for a long time for Tyson to gather enough of courage to open up his present. Finally, he took a deep breath and wrapped open the paper covering the small present. What was revealed made a warm flush rush through him and a small smile appear on his lips, and without himself noticing it tears glittered in his eyes. It was a beautiful, silvery locket, shape of an oval. It had a dragon exactly like Dragoon plastered on it. Smiling sweetly, Tyson let his fingers gently brush the metal. If that present wasn't a sing of their friendship coming back, nothing was. For some reason, Tyson felt a sudden urge to open it, and obeyed the emotion. Inside he saw a small paper, and frowning slightly, he took it and wrapped it open. The single Japanese word written on it made his heart jump and a single tear of joy escaped to his cheek.

' _Forever.'_

Smiling slightly, eyes closed, Tyson squeezed both the paper and the locket into his fist and pressed it against his furiously beating heart. This time it was Kai who'd made the promise. They'd never let go of each other again. They'd always have a bond beyond braking between them, whether it was friendship or something more. Nothing would take it away, ever again.

Curiosity growing inside her heart, Hilary carefully opened her own present – and let out a shaky gasp. There were five sketches of her, all made by Kai and all more beautiful than any words would give out: one her sleeping (which she'd already seen), one of her dancing, eyes closed (how the HECK had Kai seen her, she only danced when she was alone!), one of her reading a book, looking deeply concentrated (so Kai HAD seen her when she studied Russian) and one of her standing in front of a mirror, brushing her hair with a slight warm smile upon her face. But the last picture, it took Hilary's breath away. Gasping, she pressed her hand on her lips, deeply moved and on the verge of tears. It was of her blading, about two weeks before everything that happened to Kai. She had her hands stretched forward, ready to lounge her blade on the dish in front of her, a look of utter concentration and determination on her face. Despite the fact that the sketch had no colours, it was easy too see the fire burning in her eyes. Actually, she seemed to be flaming all over, ready to rip apart anyone who dared to challenge her. Hilary blinked her eyes in confusion and disbelief. She'd thought that no-one knew she practised blading, she'd always done it in secret in fear of being laughed at by the guys. But whenever she was practising, she felt someone watching over her, almost like protecting her. Just now she understood why.

/ _" LET IT RIP!" Hilary yelled as she lounged her ruby-red blade. _

_The blade made a perfect circle, sending out furious flames and sparkles, and Hilary felt blood boil in her veins. At the moment, she couldn't understand why it had it taken so long for her to realise why the guys loved blading so much. _

After practising for a long while, she called the blade back to her and smirked proudly as she managed to catch it with her hand. Suddenly she had a feeling that she was no longer alone. Soothing her gaze towards the nearby area shadowed by trees, she thought she saw a shadow for a while before it disappeared. After standing still for a while, she laughed and shook her head.

" _You're imagining things, Hilary", she told herself._ /

" Hey, where's Kai?". Max's voice brought Hilary back from her thoughts. " I'm gonna hug him for thanks, even if he's gonna kill me for doing so".

" You're right, Max".

They all turned their gazes towards the voice, and saw Kai sitting on the stairs. The look in Kai's eyes was the best present so far: for a first time since the nightmare started, it held a small part of the fire it had before.

" These gifts are amazing!" Kenny exclaimed. " I… Thank you!".

Kai shrugged, and for a small while they could've sworn they saw a hint of a smirk on his face.

" Whatever".

Late that night, Kai sat on the porch, gaze locked to the stars shining brightly in the sky. The falling night was freezing, but it didn't bother him, it seemed that he was used to cold. Besides, there outside the headache and memories didn't bother him, his mixed and screwed up emotions didn't hunt him. He could actually think clearly for once.

" What should I do?" he asked the stars, but they refused to give the answer. " I… I care about them both so much… How can I choose?".

He'd been so much more than a friend to the two people he cared about from the bottom of his heart, and still was. He just… He didn't know which one he held more dear.

" You should come inside. You'll catch a cold", a soft voice suddenly told him, and someone sat beside him. A quick look revealed that it was Ray.

For a long while they sat in a peaceful silence, looking at the stars.

" They both love you very much", Ray finally whispered, so quietly that Kai could barely hear.

He nodded, feeling his heart hurt.

" I know".

" You shouldn't be afraid of it, of your feelings", Ray continued, looking at him softly.

He snorted, staring into space.

" Easy for you to say", he commented dryly and paused. " How the heck am I supposed to know which one is the right one! How can I choose, when… when I don't want to?". He laughed bitterly, shaking his head. " Gosh, I sound so selfish!".

" Love is selfish". Ray took his hand gently, making him jump. " Look, you'll be able to choose eventually, thrust me. Your heart is the most stubborn one I've ever seen, but it has never mislead you. You'll know when the time comes".

He smiled, feeling a sudden warmth fill him. He looked at Ray.

" That helped". For some reason thanking didn't feel right. Slowly and gently he let go of Ray's hand and got up, stretching. " I think I'll go to bed. It's almost two".

" I'll be right behind". Ray bowed his head, seeming shy all of a sudden, and despite the lack of light Kai could've sworn he saw a rosy hue on the cheeks of his friend. " You know… It's good to hear you talk… To see you… normal".

He smirked.

" It's good to be normal". He headed towards the door. " G'night".

" Night".

With Kai gone, Ray lifted his gaze to the stars and let out a deep, miserable sigh, his breath visible in the cold air.

TBC.

* * *

A/N: You still alive out there? I mean, GAG! That fluff nearly choked me! Oh well, Christmas IS a romantic time of a year, so...

Oh yeah, and remember to vote. The faith of our Phoenix is still in your hands.


	7. Evil lurks in

The next three days passed with the gang relaxing, and Kai gaining his memory back little by little. It wasn't easy, since every drop of memory brought the Phoenix pain and made him try to withdraw from the others, but they were determined and managed to keep him on the track. Meanwhile, the link between the other team-mates seemed to be shuttering scarily. Hilary watched with envy and jealousy how Tyson and Kai's tested friendship grew stronger by each day, and Tyson couldn't even look at Hilary and Kai growing closer as well. Ray, unbeknownst to the others, suffered in silence, snapping at Mariah when she called and directing all his affection to Kia.

Standing on the doorway, Tyson felt tears sting his eyes as he looked at Kai's sleeping form. The Russian was – for once, in Tyson's opinion – sleeping alone, looking so peaceful and innocent that it tore Tyson's heart. Mr. Dickinson's words echoed through his mind.

" I can promise you a week, but then… I afraid he'll have to be relocated into somewhere more suitable".

Tyson sighed. It was day number six, and Tyson couldn't help wondering if he'd loose Kai once again the very next day.

_Mr. D wouldn't be that cruel_, he tried to assure himself, but to no avail. _He can't take Kai away… He just can't…_

Sighing again, he walked up to the bed and sat on the edge. He felt reluctant to wake up the angelic creature, but there was no choice.

They'd meet Mr. Dickinson in an hour, and if they wished to battle in the next Tournament, they'd all have to be there.

" Wake up", he whispered gently, brushing Kai's soft hair and cheek with his fingers. " It's time to get up".

Gradually Kai opened his eyes, revealing the auburn orbs that still managed to take Tyson's breath away. He found himself smiling.

" It's time to go", he whispered, loosing himself into Kai's eyes. " The others are waiting".

Kai nodded, looking at him softly, and then pulled himself up. Tyson followed the Russian with his gaze as the boy walked up to his bag, looking for clothes. Tyson blushed wildly as he realised that Kai was wearing only boxers, but as the embarrassment slightly shifted, he couldn't help staring at Kai's well-built upper body, having some thoughts he definitely wasn't proud of. His observation was interrupted much sooner than he'd hoped as Kai turned his gaze and looked at him. Had he not known his former lover better, he could've sworn the Phoenix was blushing.

" Um, Granger… You should probably…". Seeing Tyson's look of utter confusion, Kai decided to continue. " I know that you've… seen me do this before, but…".

Tyson frowned.

" See you do what before?". Just then he noticed the pile of clothes Kai was holding, and blushed madly. " Oh! OH! I'm… um… sorry…".

With a speed of a lightning, he was gone.

* * *

While Tyson was mentally banging his head into wall for embarrassment, Mr. Dickinson was meeting someone he'd preferred not to see ever again.

" They should be coming anytime soon", said the man who sat in his chair like it was his.

" Hmm". Mr. Dickinson's normally friendly face had a look of utter disgust as he turned his head to look at the man. " You're tearing them apart, Voltaire! How can you do this to your own grandson!".

Voltaire made a sound that resembled laughter, looking as calm as ever under Mr. D's glare.

" Life is about choices, Stanley. My grandson happened to make ones that lead to this". Voltaire looked into his eyes, making him shiver a little by their freezing gaze. " He'll be stronger without those weaklings around him". Voltaire shrugged and turned his gaze away, seeming to loose his interest in him. " Besides, they've had for almost a week to say goodbye. That should be enough".

Mr. D felt fury grow inside of him, and he had to work hard not to attack on the man.

" Do you have any idea of how hard it was to make them believe that _I_ was going to take Kai away from them!". He couldn't stand looking at Voltaire anymore, so he turned his head to stare out the window. " How are you planning to make Tyson and Hilary let go of him? They'll fight for him, now harder than ever".

" That part has already been taken care of", Voltaire assured him in a silky, dangerous tone.

Mr. D frowned, wondering what the man was up. Suddenly he saw the familiar figures of the Bladebrakers on the yard below him, and felt a bang of guilt and sadness in his heart.

" You should go, they're coming", he announced, reluctantly turning his head to look at Voltaire. The man was already gone.

He forced himself to smile a little as the group entered his office. The sadness in his heart grew as he saw how content and innocent Kai looked, even tough he'd gone through a hell. It was thanks to Tyson and Hilary, he knew. And he had to watch those two being taken away from him…

" Nice to see you all again", he said, meaning it from the bottom of his heart. He'd really missed that group.

" Yeah, whatever", Tyson muttered, crossing his hands over his chest. The boy was obviously still furious with him, which he understood perfectly.

Sighing, he sat into his chair, shivering a little when remembering who'd last occupied it, and took up some papers before looking at the group that had also taken seats.

" As you all know, this meeting is about the next Tournament, held in Russia".

" Russia!" all except for Kai, who seemed slightly puzzled, exclaimed.

Mr. D nodded.

" Yes. But don't worry. Even though Voltaire is on the loose, your safety has been taken care of. He won't lay a finger on any of you – especially you, Kai". It wasn't until then he realised that Kai had been blissfully unaware of his hard past. He paled, looking at the confused Russian. " Kai, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that!".

Kai didn't even hear him for the pain that seemed to be tearing his head apart. He squinted his eyes, receiving memories that were much more painful than the ones he'd already had.

" Voltaire…", he whispered. " Grandfather…".

/ _" You pathetic brat, stop that whining, NOW!" a voice yelled in Russian._

_A whip slashed six-years old Kai's back, making him cry out quietly. He squeezed his eyes tightly shut to keep more tears from falling and grit his teeth in pain._

" _I am sorry, grandfather", he sniffed, also speaking in Russian. " I… I shall become stronger. I am sorry for disobeying you"._

_Voltaire groaned, sounding deeply irritated and angry, and he heard steps growing further._

" _Take care of the brat", his grandfather ordered someone, and after a while he heard a door slam shut._

_Still doing his hardest to hold back the tears and keeping his eyes shut, he heard steps rushing towards him, and sensed someone kneel down beside him. A soft hand touched his shoulder, making him whimper in pain._

" _Kai? Are you alright?" a quiet voice asked in Russian._

_Slowly and reluctantly Kai forced his eyes open, and faced the look of deeply concerned blue eyes. Beside him had kneeled a small, red-haired boy , probably at the same age as he. The boy seemed worried about him, and he felt that he had to say something, anything, to calm him down. _

" _Yes, Tala", he whispered in a weak tone. " Just… Take me away from here…"._

_The red-head nodded and carefully helped him stand. Without saying a word the children made their way out of the room, knowing painfully clearly that there was no waking up from this nightmare._ /

With the memory passing by, Kai drew few sharp breaths, squeezing the arms of his chair so tightly that it made his knuckles turn white. After recovering for a while, he noticed that the others were looking at him with deep worry in their eyes, and felt irritated by the attention.

" You okay?" Hilary, who sat next to him, asked quietly, obviously pondering whether to touch him to comfort him or not. In the end, the girl decided not to.

" I'm okay", Kai muttered, deep inside still shaken by the memory.

After about an hour, the meeting came to an end. As everyone else left, Mr. D felt that he should say something to Tyson, who was tying his shoelaces.

" I'm truly sorry, you know?" he whispered.

The boy got his job done and looked at him, midnight-blue eyes burning. Mr. D sighed inwardly as

he noticed that there was forgiveness or softness in the young boy's gaze.

" Whatever", Tyson commented. With that, the boy was gone.

* * *

Later that night, after everyone else had gone to bed, Kai sat by the fireplace, deep in thought. The fire had almost died and didn't give much heat, but he wasn't there to warm himself.

With the new memories mixed to the old ones, he started to have a pretty good idea of his life before his ending up into the hospital. Basically, all the way 'til he met the rest of the Bladebrakers, his life had been a nightmare, a hell actually. In the darkness of the Abbey, as he now knew the place, Tala had been the only one he'd been able to lean on to – aside Dranzer. For all those years the graceful Phoenix had been his only warmth. It was no wonder that after going through something like that, it had taken for ages for his team-mates to get through to him. But they had never given up. Not even when he'd betrayed them… The memories of the events on the ice of lake Baikal and before that were probably the hardest ones for him to handle. He'd abandoned everything that meant anything to him: his friends, Dranzer – even himself. Living again all those memories, along with all the others, was beginning to be more than he could handle.

" Kai?".

He slowly opened his eyes he never knew he'd closed, and surprised as he found that his cheeks were moist with tears.

" Kai, you alright?".

He turned his head and saw Tyson standing in a small, safe distance from him, looking worried and hesitant.

" Yeah". He turned his gaze again, looking at the dying flames of the fireplace again. " Just… thinking, I guess".

He heard steps growing nearer, and felt a jolt shoot through him as Tyson wrapped his hands gently around his shoulders from behind.

" It's okay, Kai. The memories… They're… they're past", the bluenette whispered to his ear. " No matter how much they hurt, they're not coming back, not ever again".

Inhaling deeply, he let his eyes slip shut and leaned in to Tyson's touch, feeling the boy's arms around him hold him tighter.

" And if Voltaire comes back again, I'll protect you", Tyson kept whispering, he felt the boy bury his face into his silvery hair.

He smirked, not opening his eyes.

" As if I needed protection – _especially_ from you".

" Now that's the Kai for you", Tyson giggled into his hair, then paused. " Look, if… if we're going on with this… friendship-building-thing, there's something you'll have to believe".

" Hmm?". Kai felt sleepy and safe in Tyson's warm, secure arms. He wanted the boy to keep talking as the words gently guided him into the world of dreams.

" I'm never going to slip away from you again. I swear". Tyson's words were filled with urgency, anyone could tell that he was serious. Kai felt yet another jolt as he felt Tyson's hand land on the place where his heart was beating furiously. " I'll be here, whenever you need me".

Kai smiled sleepily, feeling the sleep slowly claim him.

" Good to know", he murmured. " I'll make sure you'll keep that promise".

Tyson felt more surprised than ever in his life as he felt Kai suddenly fall limp, the boy's head landed softly against his chest. Carefully checking, he smirked when discovering that Kai had actually fallen into a sleep. After thinking about it for a moment, he gently kissed Kai's hair.

" Good night, love", he whispered.

For a long while he admired Kai's sleeping, angelic form, then realising that they couldn't stay there for all night. Carefully, not willing to disturb Kai's sleep, he lifted the graceful Phoenix into his arms and carried his love into bed, all the while admiring the angel in his arms, amazed that he was allowed to hold this unearthly creature, tough it was only for a short while.

TBC.

* * *

A/N: Oh yeah, Voltaire's back. What is he up to this time? (Yeah, yeah, I know you should be asking me.)

After this, the story will turn slightly more dark - IF I should continue. (How could it not with that bastard Voltaire along!) Just thought I should warn you...

And once again: go and vote! It's the only way you'll be heard! (Oh my gosh, I sound like a politician!)


	8. Torn apart

A/N: I just realised that I've forgotten something: I disclaimer! So, here it comes: I DO NOT, thrust me, own anything concerning the Beyblade-series. My only possession the storyline of this fic. (C'mon, did you honestly think that I could own something like Beyblade!)

* * *

The next morning, Tyson opened his eyes unwillingly, all too familiar with the fact that it might be his last day with Kai. Suddenly the pain was replaced with rage-filled determination, and he squeezed his hands into tight fists.

_I'm not going to loose you again_, he promised mentally. _Not ever again._

In the other room not too far away, Kai felt someone's protective arms around him as he slowly woke up to reality. Slowly, not sure of how to feel about the touch, he cracked his eyes open and saw Hilary laying next to him, still sleeping with a soft smile on her lips. She had pulled him closer than ever before, as if she was afraid that he might disappear if she didn't hold on to him.

Absentmindedly Kai reached out his hand to touch her sweet, innocent face, when a sudden pressure against his leg interrupted him. Slightly startled, he turned his head to see what had attacked him, and felt a soft smile playing on his lips as he saw Kia. The kitten sat on his leg, with a look upon its face that challenged him to try and move it away. Smiling softly, he reached his hand and gently stroke the kitten, deserving a content meow. As the cat closed its eyes and leaned on his hand still stroking it, he took an advantage on its distraction and carefully removed the feline from the bed. The cat meowed again and looked at him accusingly before hopping away. Kai let out a quiet, low laughter before turning to look at Hilary again. The girl was awake, and looked at him with a sleepy smile on her lips.

" It seems that every single creature loves you", she murmured.

He laughed.

" Yeah, aren't I just irresistible?". He then became serious. " I do… like it when you sneak into my bed, but… Why are you holding me like this? I'm not going anywhere".

She sighed.

" I woke up last night and heard you cry in your sleep, you were having nightmares". She touched his face, looking sad. " I don't know much Russian, but I think you were calling 'mom' and 'dad'. You were hysterical, shaking all over, but when I held you, you just… calmed down".

He smiled.

" Thanks", he whispered.

After being in the bed for another while, enjoying the warmth and her touch, he slowly got up. Having smarten up from his embarrassing moment with Tyson, he had a huge, grey pullover and a pair of old trousers on the chair next to the bed. Having pulled them on, he headed towards the door.

" Wait", Hilary suddenly called out, making him stop and look at her. " When you said that… that you weren't going anywhere… You do realise that the same goes for me, right?".

He smiled and nodded, then leaving the room.

Little did the trio know that that day, everything was about to change…

* * *

Late that same evening, after dark shadows had long ago fallen over the snowy landscape, a big, red car speeded its way towards the cabin and the unsuspecting teens, carrying a single, dark figure on the driver's seat. 

_I'm going to save Tyson from that boy_, Ian Granger swore in his mind, gritting his teeth.

His feet pressed the gas pedal even harder as the conversation taken place two days earlier came back to his mind.

/ _Sitting in a park, he woke up from his thoughts as someone sat beside him. Turning his head, he shivered when seeing a man with soulless eyes._

" _Voltaire Hiwatari?"._

" _Yes", the man replied, not looking at him._

" _I understood that you had something important to tell me"._

_Now, Voltaire looked at him, and he failed to disguise his shock as the look of those inhuman eyes locked into his._

" _Your son is in a great danger, Mr. Granger", Voltaire told him in a stern voice. " Are you aware _

_of the fact that he's had an affair with my grandson – and that those feelings still haven't passed?"._

_He gasped and shook his head furiously, shock, nausea and rage washing over him all at once. _

" _No, no, NO! M – my son… Tyson… he's… he's too normal…". He gasped again and shot up from his seat, starting to walk away. " I won't believe you!"._

" _Denying it won't make it any prettier", Voltaire stated._

_He stopped, not turning to look at the older man, and grit his teeth so hard that it hurt._

" _I know Kai, my grandson. If you let Tyson stay close to him, nothing will be left of your son. And Tyson makes Kai grow weaker, so weak that he won't be able to get back up again". Voltaire paused for a while, obviously trying to hold back his emotions. " They'll destroy each other, Mr. Granger, whether they're friends, enemies or lovers. And that's why we'll have to keep them away from each other, no matter what it takes"._

_He found himself nodding in agreement, and slowly, almost as if he was in a daze, he turned to look at Voltaire. No emotions could be seen on the older man's face._

" _What are suggesting?" he asked in a voice that sounded unfamiliar in his ears._

Voltaire's eyes flashed dangerously in the light of moon.

" _Pull your son away from Kai, Mr. Granger, before it's too late. Keep them apart"._ /

And that was exactly what he was about to do as he parked the car in front of the cabin, blood boiling with determination. This madness of his son's had gone far enough. It was 'bout time for someone to put an end to it. Face stone-hard, he got off the car and headed towards the door, ringing the doorbell as soon as he got there. He sighed heavily, and closed his eyes for a second, somewhere in the back of his mind knowing that what he was about to do was wrong.

" Please forgive me…", he muttered, then opened up his eyes again.

A while later, Tyson opened the door. He saw a look of utter surprise upon his son's face.

" Dad? What are you doing here?".  
" You're coming with me", he told his son in a voice that showed no emotions. " You've been here, with this 'team', for far too long".

Tyson looked shocked, unable to believe the words he heard.

" D – dad? I… What are you saying?".

It hurt him to be forced to do this to his son, but there was no choice. He remembered perfectly what Voltaire had said. If he'd let his son stay, that… Kai would destroy the innocent boy. That was something he wouldn't let happen, not as long as he lived.

" We're going. Now".

He'd never seen a look of such anger and disgust he then saw on Tyson's face as the boy finally began to realise what was happening.

" Are you CRAZY! What the hell are you doing!" his son yelled.

" Watch your language", he snarled, letting anger take over his guilt. " What you're doing with this… Kai-person isn't normal. It's unnatural".

Tyson seemed dizzy and had to lean on the doorframe to have enough support to stand up.

" What…? How…?". The anger came back into Tyson's eyes. " Did Mr. Dickinson call you?".  
" It doesn't matter who told me. What matters is that I'm going to put an end to it".

Tyson fumed with rage, clenching his hands into tight fists.

" There's NO way you're going to get me with you!" his son snarled.

" Actually, I do. I'm your father", he reminded. He showed Tyson his cell-phone. " One call to Mr. Dickinson, and you'll never blade again – with any team or even alone. Are you sure that that's what you want?".

Tyson stood stunned, unable to speak for the overwhelming rage and shock by his father's actions. Ian used this and graphed his son's hand with grip that could've easily broken it. Ignoring Tyson's yells of protest, he dragged the boy along with him all the way to his car, forcing his son in it with a push that gave Tyson no chance to fight back. As he let go of Tyson's hand the boy quickly turned around and tried to slip out of the car, but he was faster. Feeling worse than ever in his life, he slammed the door shut between them and locked it. Screaming words that were muted by the thick glass, Tyson banged the window, to no avail trying to brake it.

" I'm sorry", he whispered, looking into his sons eyes filled with pure rage.

With that, he turned and went inside to gather his son's belongings, passing by the three shocked boys who'd woken up to Tyson's screams and came to the door to see what was going on. Without saying a word and ignoring the teens' various questions concerning what he was going, he gathered Tyson's things, including his beloved blade, left the house and walked up to his car. By then, his son had already given up trying to break free. Tyson sat on the front-seat with a blank, but still furious look in his eyes, arms crossed over his chest, staring into space. Sighing deeply, Ian threw his son's things on the back-seat and sat behind the wheel. While starting the car and heading into the night, he took a quick, sad glance at his son, just then realising what he was doing.

" I'm sorry", he whispered.

Tyson looked at him with eyes he'd never seen before. They were cold and unforgiving.

" I hate you", Tyson stated in low tone. " And what you just did… It would've been better if you'd just killed me".

After that, nothing more was said.

From the window of his room, Kai (who was unaware of Tyson's resistance to being taken away) looked at the car driving away and felt tears roll over his cheeks. Tyson was gone. After all the promises, the Dragon had left again. A pain beyond human understanding washed over him as he closed his eyes, feeling his heart, his entire soul, rip into pieces and turn into ice. He couldn't believe Tyson had really done this to him.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a flash of the phone-call he had received from Voltaire the night before stuck his mind.

/ _" Hello, grandson"._

_At first, still sleepy Kai had thought that the voice in the other end was his imagination. However, the bounding of pure, undying hatred in his chest convinced him otherwise._

" _Come after me and my friends again, and I'll kill you", he hissed, beginning to hang up._

" _Not so fast". Voltaire's chilling voice made him stop. " Let me tell you some facts of life, grandson. Your friends are weak. They – especially that Tyson-fellow – have hurt you many times, made you grow weak". He could almost see the demonic look in his grandfather's eyes, the one that would always hunt him in his nightmares. " I am the only one in this world who wants to make you stronger. As a last remaining heir of the Hiwatari-family, power is your destiny. Come to me, and I'll show you power beyond your wildest dreams. I'll make you strong again". _

_Kai couldn't have imagined that such loathing existed he felt then. He squeezed his cell-phone so hard that he was sure it would brake down. Before hanging up, he heard his grandfather's words that struck hard into his mind._

" _There's no point in running, grandson. No matter how fast or far you run, I'll always get you"._ /

Eyes still closed, Kai found himself shivering, from both rage and pain. After that call, there was no way he could stay with his friends. There was no question about it: Voltaire would come after them, hurt them 'til Kai wound surrender. Besides, there was no way he could stay with the pain he felt. And he'd rather die than surrender himself into his grandfather's hands. He… he felt like dying, drowning. This fresh new pain was more than he could or wanted to live with.

" And why should I?" he whispered to himself, beginning to quiver.

His eyes, which were blank once again, shot open as he made up his mind.

* * *

Two hours later Hilary, who was unaware of the events in the cabin for having been gone all night, ignored her ringing cell-phone as she carried on her argument with her mother in their hotel-room. 

" You said we'd be here for two weeks!" she yelled.

" Well, I'm sorry, but there's been a change of plans. My boss needs me at work, he said it's an emergency. We're leaving tomorrow-morning". She sighed, trying to touch her daughter who pulled away with a furious look in her eyes. " Look, Hilary, I know how much you wanted to stay and help Kai, but my hands are tied".

" Why can't you leave me here!". Hilary had tears in her eyes. " I've been alone with the team before, I can take care of myself!".

The desperation in her daughter's tone made her want to give in, but she chose to stay strong for once in her life. What that creepy man, Voltaire, had told her a couple of days before echoed in her ears.

/ " Kai will destroy Hilary. You'll have to tear them apart before it's too late, no matter how much it hurts, for both their sakes". /

" I'm sorry, but I need you to take care of your grandmother. We can't afford to let her have that private nurse anymore, I'm wrapped up with work and so is your father". She faked a smile. " Look, you can come back after my work is done. This is not the end of the world".

Not saying a word, Hilary stared at her with flaming, accusing eyes, obviously knowing she was faking. Then, scaring her by the sudden action, Hilary turned around and stormed into her own, small room, slamming the door shut so loudly that it made her jump. Sighing heavily in guilt and sadness, she shook her head, and just then noticed the cell-phone her daughter had abandoned on the nearby table. Taking it into her hand to put it behind Hilary's door, she noticed that there was one message waiting in the answering-machine. Feeling low for doing so, she chose to listen to it.

" _Hil, this is Max. I'm calling from the hospital_", a teary voice stated. " _It's… It's Kai… Tyson _

_left, and… and Kai did something very stupid_". A sob was heard. " _Just come here_".

She felt tears burning her eyes as she looked at the phone, knowing exactly what she was about to do. Shivering uncontrollably, she erased the panicked message, tears welling her eyes.

" I'm so sorry", she whispered in a choked voice, looking at the door of her daughter's room and hearing the sobs coming from the inside.

* * *

In a dark room, Voltaire Hiwatari's eyes flashed hazardously as he hang up the phone, feeling rage boiling in his veins. 

_So, grandson. This is the way you choose to run away from me._ Suddenly, an icy, dangerous smile appeared to his lips_. But if you really think that you'll get away this easily, you're sadly mistaken._

" Prepare the car", he commanded the man behind him. " We're going to the hospital".

TBC

* * *

A/N: Oh man, what did Kai do to himself! And what happens to Ty and Hil? 

The vote's still on, btw... (hint, hint...)


	9. Slipping away

A/N: Okay, here's another part. Hope you like it.

Oh, KaRe fans btw... This is the part you've been waiting for! Feelings FINALLY openly spoken.

* * *

Tyson gasped as if he was drowning as she shot up in his bed, heart racing from the nightmare he'd just had.

" It was just a dream… Just a dream…", he tried to tell himself, but didn't manage to sound too convincing.

" Tyson…".

The weak, small, yet so familiar voice made his gaze wonder up to the figure that had slumped against the wall, looking at him with desperate, auburn eyes.

" Kai!" he cried out, rushing to his love's side in less than a second. He tried to touch the boy, who was crying harder than he'd ever seen anyone cry before, but Kai dodged. Just then he saw the deep, blood-covered gashes in both of Kai's wrists and gulped. " What… What happened to you?".

Kai looked at him in the eyes, eyes filled with such pain that it made him cry as well. The Phoenix opened his mouth to speak, but the words his lips formed were soundless. Crying even harder, Tyson reached his hand out to touch the boy, but as soon as his fingers met Kai's face, the Russian shut his eyes tightly and screamed in pain, in a voice that tore Tyson's heart apart.

" Stop it… Please… You're… you're hurting me…", Kai managed to whispered in a strangled voice, eyes still tightly shut. And with that, Kai turned into silvery, glittering dust before Tyson's shocked eyes.

" Kai!" he called out, voice filled with tears. Desperately, as if it could've brought Kai back, he took the dust into his hands, but it slipped through his fingers, just like Kai. " KAI!".

Tyson screamed out loud as he woke up, just then noticing that he was still in the plane, next to his dad. His father gave him a worried glance.

" You alright? It seemed to be quite a nightmare you were having".

Tyson refused to reply. Instead he turned his gaze to look out of the window, feeling his heart still pounding heavily for the dream. He frowned slightly. For some reason, it was hard for him to believe that what he'd just seen was just a dream. Sighing desperately, he pressed his hand against the cold glass, as if that would've brought him back to Kai.

_Oh Kai… What's going on?_, he wondered.

* * *

After crying for hours, Hilary finally gathered herself and decided that if she really had to go, she had to explain the boys – especially Kai – what was happening.

Making sure that her mother was fast asleep, she sneaked out of the room and rushed out to the street, taking a taxi towards the cabin.

As soon as the huge, beautiful building came to her view, she frowned, getting a strong feeling that something as deeply wrong. Unable to shake the thought away, she paid for the ride and rushed towards the door with a speed that suggested there was someone chasing her.

" Guys?". Her dark feeling only grew stronger as she noticed that the door was slightly open and, hesitantly, she pushed it fully open and stepped in. " Are you in here?".

No reply came and, feeling cold shivers go down her spine, she slowly started to make her way towards the stairs. On the way, she noticed that everything was a mess, as if the boys had left in a hurry. She frowned, feeling an uncomfortable weight in her heart.

What the hell's going on! 

Suddenly she froze, one foot on the first step of the stairs, as she saw the view that greeted her behind the wide-open bathroom-door. She started shaking all over and let out a small cry. There was blood all over the floor, _far_ too much for her liking. In the middle of the blood laid a razor, which the suspected to be the cause of the horrible sight.

" Oh my God…", she gasped, covering her mouth with her hand, feeling tears well into her eyes as sudden understanding washed over her. " Kai… No… You… you can't be… Right?".

" Hilary?". She could barely hear her mother's call. Unregistered by her, her mother carefully stepped in, fearing her daughter's possible reaction. She began to approach Hilary, but froze just a little behind her and paled as the view of the bathroom greeted her. " Oh my God…".

World was spinning in Hilary's eyes and, unable to support herself, she took a desperate hold of the handrail of the stairs, squeezing it so hard that her knuckles turned white. All the while tears rolled over her cheeks and pain, worse than she'd ever felt before, crushed her heart, making her whimper and press her free hand tightly against her chest.

" Kai… No…", she whispered, repeating the two words over and over again, as if unable to believe them.

Her mother had tears in her eyes as well as she looked at her daughter. Eventually she decided to forget about all carefulness. She was her mother, for goodness' sake! Slowly, taking one step at a time, she approached her daughter and eventually pressed a calming hand to her shoulder. Hilary shuttered under the touch, but didn't have the strength to pull away.

" Oh Hilary…", she whispered, so quietly that her daughter couldn't hear her.

Suddenly, without a warning, Hilary let out a cry of pain unlike anything she'd ever heard before, and promptly fell into her arms, shaking uncontrollably and crying hysterically. She was obviously in a shock.

" Hilary!" she exclaimed, carefully trying to shake her daughter back into her senses. " Hilary, it's… It's alright… Calm down!".

All of a sudden, so quickly that it scared her, Hilary stopped from shaking and crying. She watched helplessly as her daughter's eyes suddenly slipped shut and she fell into her arms. Only one word escaped from Hilary's lips before she fell into unconsciousness.

" Kai…".

* * *

Early in the following morning, the mood in the hospital-room was far from joyful as the remands of the Bladebrakers had gathered around their captain. Kai lied in the bed, face terrifyingly pale, looking almost like he was sleeping. He had a peaceful, almost happy look upon his face. The only thing reminding the boys of the fact that he wasn't just sleeping were the thick bandages wrapped around his wrists.

" Is he going to be alright?" Ray finally asked, piercing the silence that had occupied the room for a long time.

Dr. Gary Nichols, who'd been tending Kai, let out a sad sigh.

" I'm sorry kids, but it's impossible to tell just yet. Your friend lost a lot of blood". Dr. Nichols looked at Kai, seeming puzzled. " To be honest… I've never seen anything like this before".

The boys blinked, not understanding.

" What do you mean?" Kenny finally asked, voice filled with curiosity.

" Your friend… He should've died of that blood-loss. But…". Dr. Nichols shook his head. " He should be awake now. He's not in a coma, not even unconscious… I don't understand why he fought so hard to stay alive and now chooses to give up like this!".

The last words caused the trio to freeze in horror.

" What do you mean by he's giving up?" Ray asked in a raspy voice.

Dr. Nichols looked guilty, as if he'd said too much, and couldn't meet their eyes.

" I really shouldn't be telling you this, but I think you deserve to know. You obviously care about him a lot". Now looking at them, the doctor seemed sad. " I'm sorry for having to tell you this, but Kai's vitals are fading, fast. His pulse and heartbeat are dropping". The doctor shook his head, looking at Kai. " As I told you before, I've never seen anything like this before, and neither have my colleagues".

" There's gotta be something you can do!". Max blinked his eyes furiously, trying to stop the tears

of pain. " You guys are doctors! Shouldn't you cure people!".

Dr. Nichols looked at them again, eyes filled with compassion and understanding.

" I know that this must be hard for you, but…".

" No", Ray, who was usually calm and sensible, hissed through clenched teeth, eyes directed to Kai's pale, fragile form. " You don't know a shit".

Taking the words and the looks upon the trios face, Dr. Nichols figured that he'd be no use there. Giving them all a sympathetic, sad look, he started to take his exit.

" As I said, I'm sorry". He sighed, hand on the door-handle by then. " We'll do everything we can to make your friend as comfortable as possible, but…". Shaking his head, the doctor who'd seen almost everything imaginable, cut the sentence as he understood that for a first time in his life, he couldn't say or do anything to help.

With the doctor gone, Max sighed and started phasing around the room.

" I can't understand why Hilary isn't here already!" he sighed, deeply irritated. " I've left her about thousand messages!".

" She'll be here", Kenny, who stood before the window, staring out with blank eyes, murmured, and crossed his hands over his chest, just like Kai always did. " It'll be okay. Everything's gonna work out".

Max sighed deeply as he looked at his friends. As Kenny continued his staring into space, muttering something he couldn't make out, he let his gaze wander to Ray. The Chinese sat beside Kai's bed, where he had remained ever since they'd been allowed into the room, squeezing the Russian's limp hand desperately with both hands, as if the touch could've forced Kai to come back to them. The look upon Ray's face, pail from the lack of sleep, hurt him deeply. He'd seen Ray upset before – after loosing Driger, after having a fight with Mariah – but this… This pain was beyond anything he'd ever seen before. Ray's intent, begging gaze was locked to Kai's snow-white face, and tough the neko-jin's lips weren't moving, Max could clearly see how much the boy was speaking to Kai. He suspected that Ray didn't even know the rest of the world existed.

" Kenny, would come with me to buy some coffee?" he more demanded than asked. It was obvious that Ray needed a moment alone with Kai to mouth all the words running through his head, and he needed a moment to at least try to clear his head – and so did Kenny.

" Yeah, whatever", the brunette muttered.

Nodding, he looked at Ray, although he knew that the boy didn't even see or hear him.

" We'll be back in a while", he announced, and with that he headed towards the door, with Kenny on his tails.

Gradually Ray became aware of the fact that he was alone with Kai, and felt a selfish flush of satisfaction. Secretly, he'd been begging for this moment since the nightmarish events of the night before. If Kai truly was slipping away from him like this, this was his last chance to let the Phoenix know the secrets of his heart. Letting out a shaky breath, he squeezed Kai's hand tighter than he had before, half expecting it to squeeze back, and felt a single tear roll over his cheek as it remained limp.

" You have no idea of how much I hate you right now", he whispered, letting his fingers briefly brush the thick, white bandage on the wrist. " I refuse to believe that the Kai I know would let his entire life go wasted like this!". Tears were now rolling freely over his cheeks. " Damnit Kai, you're so much stronger than this, we be both know it!". Sobbing and shaking uncontrollably, he lifted Kai's hand and pressed it against his forehead, closing his eyes. " I hate you for making me feel this confused, _koneko_. I… I just don't know what I feel anymore! You're messing my head, and…". He shook his head and sighed. " But it's not your fault, I know. I… This is all my doing. It's just that… It's so easy to blame you". He smiled faintly, still not opening his eyes. " And it's easy to love you. So easy that it scares me". He let out a small, low laughter. " You try so hard to push everyone away, to be untouched. But still you do it… You make everyone love you".

Getting his emotions slightly back into control, he slowly opened his eyes and let his hands, still

holding Kai's, fall back onto the bed. His eyes were still filled with tears as he looked at the calm, angelic face of his friend. He could almost see life slowly leaking out of Kai, and knowing that there was nothing he could do to stop it made blood boil in rage he'd never felt before. Amber eyes burning, almost like Kai's own once had, he looked at the boy as a sudden realisation came to him. There _was_ something – or someone, actually – that could bring Kai back.

" I'm not going to watch you fade away", he whispered. " I'm gonna bring Tyson and Hilary here, no matter what it takes. I can't bring you back, but they can".

In a sudden rush of emotion and adrenaline, he leaned forward, closing his eyes, and landed a tender, gentle kiss onto Kai's unnaturally cold forehead. If only he'd been the right prince to wake up this sleeping beauty… He pulled back with a sigh and opened his eyes to look at Kai, small smile playing on his lips.

" I have to go now, but I'll come back – and I promise you that I won't come alone". His smile faded. " Please, don't give up. You have to stay strong, just for a little while longer".

Slowly, afraid that his legs might not support him, he got up and, taking a one last glance at Kai's unmoving form, and headed towards the door – bumping into very confused looking Max and Kenny.

" Ray, where are you going?" Max asked, sounding almost scared. " Are you leaving too?".

He shook his head, feeling more determined than ever before in his life.

" None of us can bring Kai back, but I know who can", he explained. " This is his last chance".

Both Max and Kenny (who now seemed slightly more like himself) nodded, knowing exactly what he was about to do. Letting his emotions take control, Max suddenly threw his arms around Ray and hugged the Chinese tightly.

" Good luck", the blonde whispered.

" Yeah". Kenny gave Ray an encouraging smile. " Everything's gonna work out eventually. I just know it".

Ending his hug with Max, Ray lightly returned the smile.

" Yeah". Letting out a deep breath, he started to leave. " I'll call you if anything happens".

The duo nodded, and after receiving few wishes of luck and saying bye, he took his long, coffee-brown jacket, put it on and left, unable to look behind him. Had he seen his friends, especially Kai, once more, he would've broken into tears again, and that was the last thing he wanted. He had to be strong now – for his sake and Kai's.

_I hope Chief's right_, he thought while pressing a button to order the elevator. _Because this is a battle that I can't afford to loose._ He sighed, stepping into the elevator as it came. _None of us can._

* * *

Making sure that no-one was following him, Dr. Nichols slipped in from a thick, metallic door that clearly said 'Do not enter'. Inside, there was a huge, fancy room with the best furniture money could buy. Before a huge window stood an elder man, hands crossed behind his back.

" Good morning, Dr. Nichols", the man greeted him, not turning. " Any news?".

He sighed, knowing that this man would not be pleased with what he had to say.

" I afraid not any good ones, Mr. Voltaire", he replied. " Kai's state is growing worse by each minute. I… I afraid that there's nothing more we can do for him".

At this point, Voltaire turned around and he found himself shutter under the soulless, powerful glare.

" Do not force me to get him another doctor, Dr. Nichols. I don't like being disappointed with people", the man snarled through clenched teeth.

" I'm not a God, Mr. Voltaire!" he exclaimed in a desperate tone. " Kai is dying! There's nothing I can do to stop it!". He gulped. " I… I think he needs those… Tyson and Hilary… or he'll die".

With a speed of a lightning, Voltaire graphed him by the collars and threw him against the wall.

" I don't think you understand, Dr. Nichols", the man snarled, eyes glowing darkly. " My grandson's destiny is perfection, not love". The man slowly let go of him and walked back to window, taking the pose he'd had when Dr. Nichols entered. " Whatever it takes, you must keep Tyson Granger and Hilary Tatibana away from Kai. They only make him weak. Love only makes him weak".

Dr. Nichols gasped.

" But… Kai will die without them!".

Voltaire peered him over his shoulder, locking his inhuman, devilish eyes into his.

" Then it shall be his destiny".

TBC.

* * *

A/N: Wish me to continue? 

If you do, remember to vote and review.


	10. Lost and found

A/N: Want it or not, here comes another chappy! BUAHHAHHAAAAAA!

Okay, seriously, thanks to all who've read and reviewd. It means a lot, you know that?

Okay, okay, on with the story.

* * *

Two days had passed since Tyson's father forced him away from his friends, away from Kai. Since then he hadn't eaten a thing (a/n: believe it or not!), or had any sleep without those disturbing nightmares of Kai turning into dust before his eyes. So preferably, he chose not to sleep at all. Tyson couldn't understand the dreams. Were they sings? Was Kai in danger?

Sitting on his bed in his father's house, Tyson let out a desperate sigh and landed his forehead against his knees, which were pressed against his chest. He had no idea of what time it was. Boards were nailed to hide the only small window of the room, and since he refused to leave the room, he had no chance to see the outside world. He wanted desperately to call his friends, to tell them where he was and to ask what was going on, but his father had the only phone in the house, so he had no chance. Tyson sighed again, feeling annoyed and helpless.

" Tyson?". The door opened softly, and he refused to look at his father as the man stepped in. " The dinner is ready. Would you like to eat?".

He didn't react in any way, and after waiting for few seconds his father sighed in defeat and left, closing the door behind him. With the door closed, Tyson allowed a single tear escape to his cheek.

_Oh Kai, I'm so sorry… I'm sorry…_ More tears fell. _I betrayed my promise… I failed you again…_

He buried his face into his knees and cried, setting free all the pain in his heart.

Meanwhile, very close to Tyson's father's house, Ray sat in a small café, sipping a cup of tea.

After two fruitless days of searching, he found himself being deeply irritated. Now matter how many times he asked, no-one in this town seemed to know where Ian Granger lived, and it would've been all too easy if the address would've been in the phonebook. So, basically all he could do was to go from door to door. And all the while time was slowly running out…

He let out a sigh as he looked out of the window. It was snowing, and he felt a jolt run through him as it reminded him of the day his safe and secure world turned upside down. The day the Tiger became enchanted by the Phoenix…

/ _Ray opened his eyes slowly, not exactly sure of why he was awake. Suddenly the sound came to his cat's senses. He frowned. He'd never heard anything like it before. What was it? Where did it come from? Frowning, he slowly got up, wrapping his hands tightly around him as the coldness of the room embraced him. He briefly noted that Kai wasn't in his bed as he soundlessly tossed across the room, heading out of the door. As he stepped outside into the freezing winter-air, he noticed that the sound he'd heard became louder. Shivering from the cold, he begun to follow it, as if under some sort of a spell. He vaguely noted that snow was falling on him. He rounded the house, but stopped as soon he saw the figure sitting on the bench under the window._

Kai! 

_Kai had his eyes closed, legs pressed against his chest and arms wrapped around them. For the first time ever, Ray saw a look of calmness and tenderness upon his captain's face. The mighty, untouchable Phoenix seemed almost fragile, and…perfect. Like a king. But the look wasn't what took him by surprise. It was the fact that the sound he'd followed came from Kai. The Phoenix… Ray could hardly believe his eyes. Kai was singing. And the voice… Ray became breathless, completely enchanted. It was the most beautiful thing he'd ever heard. Kai was singing in Russian, so he couldn't understand the words, but it didn't matter. He closed his eyes as he listened to the soft, beautiful voice, completely forgetting how cold it was._ /

Ray sighed again. It had taken him for a long time admit himself that in that winter-morning, he'd fallen for the mysterious Phoenix. Kai never saw him, and he kept the secret of the Russian's moment of softness tightly inside of him – along with his feelings.

He snapped out of his thoughts as he heard his cell-phone ring. It was Mariah.

" Hi".

" _Hi to you too_". She sighed. " _Look, I just heard about Kai, and… I wanted you to know, that even tough there's all this mess going on between us, you can talk to me anytime you want_".

Ray smiled. In the middle of his storm of emotions, he'd almost forgotten that Mariah wasn't just his girlfriend. She was also a close friend, had been for pretty much all their lives. They had a bond, far stronger than something a lovers' fight could damage. Of course she'd be there for him. She always would.

" Thanks". His smile widened slightly. " That means a lot to me, you know?".

Mariah laughed.

" _Funny little cat-boy_". A loud shout was heard from the background, and she sighed. " _Look, I've gotta go now. Lee just informed in that oh-so-gentle way of his that it's time to practise_".

Ray grinned. He remembered perfectly what Lee could be like if he wanted to.

" 'K. I'll call you".

" _Whatever_". She threw him a kiss through the phone. " _Hang in there, Ray. Everything's gonna work out. Bye!_".

He smiled. For some reason it was easy to believe her.

" Thanks. I needed that. Bye".

With that, he hung up the phone, sinking into his thoughts again. This was his first conversation in God knows for how long with Mariah that didn't end up into a fight. Despite all, it gave him hope.

_Everything's possible_, he mused, sipping his tea which had already gone cold.

Suddenly his phone rang again, and he answered hurriedly as he discovered it was Max.

" Anything new?" he asked in a tense voice, filled with hope from the last phone-call.

Max's deep sigh, however, soon dropped him back to ground.

" _I'm sorry to say, but no_". There was a long pause. " _Any sings of Ty and his dad?_".

He sighed as well, shaking his head tough Max couldn't see it.

" No. It seems that that man doesn't even exist!" he replied, in a voice that gave out all his anger and frustration.

" _Don't worry, you'll find him_".

" How can you be so sure?" he muttered, taking another a sip of his now icy tea.

" _Because I know you. You just wont come home without Tyson_". Max gave a stifled yawn, it was obviously that he'd been awake all night. " _I've gotta go now, Dr. Nichols just went into Kai's room. Good luck, not that you would need any_".

Ray smiled slightly.

" Thanks. Bye!".

" _Bye_".

Sighing, Ray dropped the cell-phone into his jacket-pocket and with yet another sip, he decided that it was time to abandon the tea that by the time tasted rotten. Slowly, not completely thrusting his legs to do their work, he got up and headed towards the door. When he got down to the street, he realised that he had no idea of where to go. He'd looked from every single direction. There was nowhere left to go to. Suddenly he let out a surprised yelp as someone bumped into him with a force caused by high speed, and Ray found himself fallen to the street as his normally good reflexes failed him.

" Oh my gosh, I'm sorry!" a man's voice exclaimed, and a hand reached out to help him up. " I wasn't looking".

" It's alright", he assured, gratefully taking the offered hand. A strong pull lifted him up, and as soon as he was up, he gasped as he looked at the familiar face before him. " No way…".

Ian Granger, on the other hand, seemed shocked as he recognised the Chinese boy before him.

" Once again, I'm sorry. I should look more carefully", the man said in a stiff, toneless voice, trying to leave. Ray's irony grip prevented him from doing so.

" I came here for Tyson", he informed in a harsh voice that gave no chance for objections. " Look, Mr. Granger… Someone your son holds very dear is dying, and Tyson is the only one who can help". Little by little he loosened his grip on the man's hand. " Please. Tyson is his only hope".

" 'His'?". Mr. Granger turned to face him, and Ray felt cold shivers as he saw the look in the man's eyes. " Is it that… Kai who's dying?".

" Yes", he confirmed quietly, knowing perfectly well what the man thought about Kai. " Please. You can't… You can't let someone die just because…". His eyes were filled with tears as he looked into Mr. Granger's own. " Please".

" I'm sorry, but there's nothing I can do to help your friend". With that, the man turned and began to walk away. " I suggest you to go back to your friend before it's too late. You wont find what you're looking for from here".

And so the man was gone, leaving Ray frozen by horror and disbelief.

As world begun to rush back into Hilary's mind, she immediately felt a slash of excruciating pain wash over her head and moaned quietly.

" Hilary? Are you awake?".

Someone rushed over to her, but she didn't want to open up her eyes just yet to see who it was. Instead she rubbed her face roughly with both hands. Everything was so fuzzy, it was hard to think clearly.

_What happened?_

Just then it struck her. The bathroom, all the blood on the floor… Tears rolled to her cheeks.

" Kai…".

" Hilary, sweetie, open up your eyes". A cool hand brushed her teary cheek.

" I don't want to", she whispered in a voice full of tears. " If… If I just keep my eyes closed and believe, he'll still be here".

" Oh honey…". Her mother picked her up held her close. " Sh… It'll be alright… Sh…".

She finally opened her tear-filled eyes, and desperately looked into her mother's own. She shook her head violently.

" No it won't".

As Hilary buried her head into her mother's shoulder, shaking and sobbing uncontrollably, she had no idea that the one she so deeply missed was only two floors away.

Kai let out a quiet breath as he felt the cold wind caress his face once again. Gradually, almost unwillingly, he opened his eyes to witness the view before him.

He stood on an edge of a cliff. Far, so far that the fall seemed endless, greedy, stonewall-like waves roughly collided with the ancient stone of the cliff, letting out a enraged roar as the stones held their ground against the vicious attacks. Slowly, as if taking carefully in all he saw, the Phoenix allowed his gaze to wonder further across the ocean, wiping its pitch-black, endless depths. He could almost hear the waves call out his name, but for some reason he couldn't understand, he wasn't willing to surrender, not yet at least. It wasn't until then the Russian noticed how very cold it was, but didn't let it disturb him. He'd gotten used to coldness during his short life. Slowly he allowed another breath brake free from his lips, it was visible in the freezing air as he lifted his gaze to the sky. It was black, if possible even darker than the ocean, and midnight-blue clouds lazily drifted through the sky. Moon was nowhere to be seen, he strongly doubted there wasn't one, and it was so dark that he could hardly see ahead of him. Kai didn't mind the darkness. He'd spent pretty much all his life in dark, why should his last days be different?

Yes, Kai knew he was dying. Every single moment he could feel everything he'd been grasping on

to for so long, so hard, slip away: his loved ones, his friends, Dranzer, the very life itself. For a

longest time he'd tried to hold on to those things in this darkness, but he no longer had the strength.

" I'm sorry", he whispered, letting his eyes slip shut again. " I tried, I really did. But the battle's through. This is the furthest I can go".

And so he remained, standing still on the cliff, feeling more alone than ever in his life, little by little letting go of everything he had.

TBC.


	11. One step forward, two steps back

A/N: And this is how it goes on...

And sorry, I forgot to use to add-rulers in the last chapter! Hope it didn't make it impossible to read! Sorry again, and on with the show.

* * *

The day after his less than warm meeting with Tyson's father, Ray decided that he'd no longer be a nice guy. According to what he'd heard from Max over the phone, Kai was growing weaker, fast. It'd mean pulling off a miracle, but Ray was determined to convince Ian Granger that Kai's life _was_ well worth saving. No matter what measures he'd have to take.

Standing before the door he'd been searching for days, his amber orbs seemed to be on fire by determination. After a waiting that seemed unbearably long for him, Ian Granger finally opened up the door. A mixture of rage and fear flashed in the man's eyes and he tried to pull the door close with all his strength, but the Tiger was faster. Eyes flashing, Ray slipped his foot to keep the door from being closed.

" I came a long way to save my friend's life, and I'm not leaving before you've listened to me", he announced in a voice that showed no room for protest.

Sighing deeply in defeat, Mr. Granger allowed the boy inside. As if owning the place, Ray stormed into the living-room, taking a seat on the almost broken couch. Mr. Granger followed him, and stood leaning on the wall across the room, crossing his arms over his chest.

" Do you realise that this is trespassing, young man?" the man inquired, sounding deeply tense.

" To be honest, I don't even care". He looked directly into the man's eyes. " Mr. Granger, Kai is

dying, and Tyson is the only one who can pull him back. I refuse to believe that you could let someone die just because you're afraid of Tyson's emotions".

" I am not afraid of my son's emotions", Mr. Granger corrected in a strange, deep voice. " What I'm afraid of is what this… Kai will turn him into".

Ray had to fight against the urge to smack the man. He felt tears sting his eyes and had to blink to keep them away.

" Mr. Granger, Kai is the best thing Tyson has ever had. I've seen it with my own too eyes". Tears were no longer under his control. " You have no idea of how important Kai is to Tyson. They… They would die without each other! Whether it's friendship or love they have, it's stronger and purer than anything I've ever seen before".

For a while, he saw a hint of softness in Mr. Granger's eyes, but I disappeared as fast as it came.

" Why should I believe you?" the man snarled. " Who are you to say who deserves my son and who doesn't?".

" I think I'm the one to make that decision, not either one of you", a voice replied.

Turning their heads, they saw Tyson standing on the other door of the room. Tears were running down the pale boy's cheeks, but his eyes were burning with fire Ray had never seen in them before as the young Dragon gazed at his father.

" You can't lock me in here, father", Tyson announced. " There's no way you can keep me away from Kai, because we're always together". The boy let out a dry, bitter laughter. " It took me for all these years to realise and accept the truth. No matter where we go, no matter how far or fast we run, we'll never be apart. Nothing in this world can brake the bond between us, not after all we've been through". Tears run even harder to Tyson's cheeks now. " If… If you let Kai die, I'll die too".

Mr. Granger was wordless by his son's speech. He'd never seen Tyson so passionate about anything before, not even blading. It had taken him for far too long, it had made him go way too far, but at that moment, under his son's gaze that seemed to burn him, he was forced to face the truth. No matter how much he hated to admit it, he couldn't fight against Kai Hiwatari. His young Dragon had made his choice.

" What if he hurts you?" he asked.

Tyson laughed tearfully.

" He could never hurt me as much as I hurt him". His son looked at him with desperate eyes. " Let me go. Because if you won't, I'll leave anyway, and after that you'll never see me again".

As Ian saw the fire in Tyson's eyes, he understood that he had no choice. If he would hold on, he'd loose his son forever. He knew that Tyson would suffer, but there was nothing he could do to keep this disaster from happening. Sighing deeply, he gave a small, almost invisible nod. Tyson nodded back, in a sign of understanding, and with no words spoken walked out of the house, followed by the Chinese boy. As the door shut quietly, Ian let his tears fall and looked at the picture of his late wife, placed on the bookshelf across the room.

" I'm sorry, Miyeko", he whispered through tears. " I promised I'd protect Tyson from pain and sorrow, but he's beyond my help now". His eyes were sad as he looked at the picture intently, almost seeing the woman still in the room before him. " It's your turn to protect him now, my love".

* * *

Agonising minutes later, Tyson and Ray found themselves from the airport. Their flight wouldn't leave in two hours, so they couldn't do anything but sit and wait.

Tyson found himself being tightly on the edge as he sat beside Ray, who seemed to be deep in thought. A question, so scary that it was hard for him to even think about it, burned his mind. Eventually he could no longer take the uncertainty.

" Ray… The way you talked about Kai in my dad's house…". He swallowed hard. " Do you have… feelings for him?".

Ray's eyes widened, and the look of utter shock upon the neko-jin's face replied Tyson's question. It took for a long time before Ray could eventually look at him. His amber eyes were filled with sadness he'd held inside of him for such a long time.

" It doesn't matter", the Chinese murmured in a soft, miserable voice, turning his gaze away from Tyson and staring at his hands instead. " No matter how much I care about Kai, he would never feel the same way". Ray swallowed hard, it was obviously hard for him to say the words. " Tyson, I don't think you have any idea of how important you are to him, how much you mean to him". Ray sighed and smiled a little, looking at him again. " I would give just about anything to be as close to him as you are, but it's not under my power".

Tyson nodded, speechless by Ray's words, and the two drifted into their thoughts again, not looking at each other.

" Thanks", he finally managed to utter.

Ray didn't reply.

* * *

Still in the hospital, Hilary moved restlessly in her bed, cold sweat glittering on her forehead.

" _Hilary, help me, please!_" Kai's desperate voice begged inside her head, over and over again, growing a little bit weaker each time.

Eventually, her eyes snapped open and she sat up, gasping for air. She couldn't understand the calling she'd heard. Kai was gone. How could he…?

" Oh my God…", she whispered, eyes widening, as a sudden realisation washed over her.

And at that moment, she felt it with all her heart: Kai was still alive. And he needed her.

Filled with new-found determination, she took a quick glance at her mother, who'd fallen asleep in her chair, and carefully, as silently as possible, slipped out of her bed and slowly walked into the hallway, her legs just barely carrying her. Suddenly she felt the call from her dream again, this time even stronger, and forgetting all carefulness sprinted forward, as if some force was guiding her. She had to hurry, Kai's time was running out.

And suddenly she was stood behind the huge window that separated Kai's hospital-room from the hallway, frozen by shock. At first she saw Max, who'd fallen asleep in his chair beside Kai, his bag at the window, but then… Her eyes watered as she saw Kai's sleeping form. He was so very pale, so very fragile, that it broke her heart.

She started to shiver as she remembered the time she'd last seen her beloved Phoenix like that. Back

then, she'd lacked the power to open up the door and go in…

" Hilary Tatibana?" a stern voice suddenly asked, frightening her. Turning her head, she saw a male-doctor, who looked at her with harsh eyes. " You should be in your room, young lady".

She swallowed. Who the heck was this man!

" It's… It's my friend… I need to be with him", she tried to explain, voice just a thin whisper. " He needs me".

" What you need is rest". The doctor walked closer. " You're recovering from a severe case of shock. It's understandable that your mind is a bit hazy".

She shook her head vigorously, her eyes glittering from tears.

" No, NO! I am thinking straight!" she screamed, hoping that the voice would push the man away, but it didn't. " He's dying! I have to see him! Please, let me see him!".

But her begs seemed to be nothing but air to the man approaching her. Face expressionless, he took a strong hold of her with other hand, and pulled up a needle with another. Hilary's eyes widened.

" Put that away!" she yelled. " I'm not crazy! Put that away!".

Her words went unheard, and no matter how bravely she struggled, the needle eventually punctured the skin of her arm.

" You'll feel much better soon", the doctor muttered.

For a longest time she fought against the sleepy, dizzy feeling the drug gave her, but eventually her eyes slipped shut and she fell limp to the man's arms. A single tear rolled to her cheek.

Sighing heavily, Dr. Nichols looked sadly at the girl in his arms.

" I'm sorry", he whispered.

In the room, Max woke up, having a sudden feeling of being watched. As he quickly turned his

head and looked at the hallway through the window, however, no-one was there. He frowned.

" Am I going crazy?" he muttered.

* * *

Not too far away, in the room he'd occupied for days, Voltaire glared at the man before him, hands crossed over his chest.

" You are the only one I can thrust", he announced. " Do you think you can do it?".

The other man's eyes flashed in the dark.

" Graphing two kids is not a hard task, Mr. Voltaire".

" Good". Voltaire turned around, staring out the window. " They shall arrive shortly. Don't be late". His eyes squinted. " And _don't_ fail".

" I never do, Mr. Voltaire".

And with that the man was gone, swiftly as a shadow.

* * *

Tyson had no idea of for how long he'd been sitting in the plane, but no matter how short the time was, he feared that it was too long. According to what Ray had told him, Kai's time was running out, fast. But that wasn't the only thing that worried the Dragon. He couldn't quite explain it, but by each passing second, he could feel the bond he and Kai always had fade. He didn't dare to think what it would mean if the connection was to break completely.

_Hold on, Kai, you hear me? Just for a little while longer._ He sighed, closing his eyes. _I love you._

" Tyson?". Ray's voice shook him awake from his thoughts. " We're landing".

" Finally!" he blurted out, meaning it from the bottom of his heart.

Without saying another word, the boys waited as the flight landed.

At the airport, icy, watchful eyes of a man who'd hidden himself into the shadows observed the crowd walking by. He stood still patiently, like a predator waiting for it's prey. Finally the eyes spotted the two boys rushing across the hall, towards the door. Freezing smile revealed the perfect row of flawlessly white teeth.

_And so the chase begins_, he mused, slowly starting to follow the unsuspecting boys.

Haling for a taxi, Ray's cat's senses suddenly detected that something wasn't quite in place.

Furrowing his eyebrows, he looked at Tyson, who was jumping and flapping his arms like a baby-bird trying to fly for a first time as the Dragon tried to catch a taxi as well, seeming to be oblivious to the sense of threat.

" Tyson", he hissed through clenched teeth. " Something's wrong".

Tyson stopped his ridiculous flapping and looked at him, seeming confused.

" What are you talking about?".

" Someone's coming", he replied tensely.

" You have no idea of how right you are, boy", a silky Russian accent noted dangerously from behind them.

Slowly turning around, they both gasped as they saw the all-too-familiar purple hared man, who had an icy smirk on his face.

" Boris", Ray hissed.

" How very nice of you to remember". The Russian moved his black jacket just a little, revealing the gun he'd hidden beneath it. " I suggest you two to co-operate. I would hate to waste the bullets".

The two gulped, coming to the realisation that they didn't exactly have a choice. Few seconds later a long, black limousine stopped before them.

" Would you boys like to take a little ride with me?" Boris suggested, opening the car's door.

Without a word, the two slipped in. Both surprised as they saw Tala sitting in the car with his cold mask on his face, arms folded over his chest and legs crossed. Tyson opened his mouth to say something, but the read-head silenced him with a quick shake of head. Still smirking dangerously, Boris sat between Tyson and Ray, and with that the journey begun.

TBC.

* * *

A/N: Oh man, Boris has Ray and Tyson! What's Tala up to?


	12. Trapped

A/N: Back with another part! Thanks again for reviews!

* * *

Back in the hospital, Max and Kenny begun to panic. First Hilary had disappeared without a trace, and now the same thing seemed to have happened to Ray and Tyson. The Chinese had phoned them from the airport, and informed them that he'd found Tyson and they were coming soon. But that was over two days ago. And along with that, there still wasn't a sign of Hilary. 

" This just isn't happening! Tell me that this isn't happening!" Kenny exclaimed, phasing around the room, flapping his arms.

" Stop that. I'm just a bit-beast, and you're giving even me a headache!" Dizzy snapped from the chair Kenny had placed her.

" Well EXCUSE ME for being a little tense, but this kinda is an EMERGENCY!" Kenny yelled, eyeing his laptop with a homicidal glance.

" Would you please stop that phasing, you're driving me crazy!" Max, sitting beside Kai's bed, begged desperately, rubbing his head.

" So now you finally know what you're like in a sugar-high", Dizzy commented.

This time Max seemed murderous as he glanced at the laptop.

" Don't make me shut you down", he growled.

Giving a long, deep sigh, Kenny finally sat down.

" Well, we've gotta do something", he announced, trying to collect himself. " The fact is that most of our friends are missing, and we're running out of time".

" Yeah". Max eyed Kai, and felt cold shivers run down his spine. Was it possible that Kai was even paler than before? He then looked at Kenny again. " Do you think Dizzy knows something?".

" Just a second". Kenny graphed Dizzy roughly (which she loudly protested), and typed furiously for a moment. Receiving a piece of information, the boy let out a loud gasp. " Oh crap…".

" What?". Max was immediately beside him, and gasped as well, going pale. " Now this is DEFINITELY not a good thing".

What they were eyeing on was a newspaper-clip.

" Boris is on the loose too". Kenny shuttered. " First Voltaire, now him…".

Max shook his head.

" If those two find each other, we're all in trouble". He looked at Kai in deep concern. " Especially

he".

" You are right, boys". Mr. Dickinson's familiar voice frightened them both. The man stood on the door with Dr. Nichols. Mr. Dickinson sighed as the two stepped in and closed the door. " Look, before you say anything, let me explain myself".

" This'll better be good", Max muttered, crossing his hands over his chest.

After clearing his throat, Mr. D begun.

" Two weeks ago, Voltaire came to me. I was about to call the police, but he threatened that if I would, he'd kill Kai". The man sighed and shook his head sadly. " So there I was. I had to do what he said, or he'd hurt Kai, possibly all of you".

" What did he make you do?" Kenny asked quietly, already guessing the answer.

" He told me to take Kai away from you". Mr. D looked at them intently. " Look boys, you have to believe me, that was the only reason I was ripping Kai away from you".

Max melted into a smile.

" We believe". He grew solemn again, looking at Dr. Nichols. " What does he got to do with this?".

" Voltaire came to me as well. He threatened to go after my family if I would disobey him", Dr. Nichols replied, looking sad and regretful. " I did something I'm not proud of to that friend of yours, Hilary".

Both Max and Kenny went pale.

" What did you do to her?" Kenny asked in a wheezing voice.

" I sedated her when she was coming to see Kai". He sighed. " I would've undone my mistake, but I wasn't allowed near her. Apparently Voltaire has found another puppet when I rebelled".

Everyone was silent for a long moment, trying to take in all they'd heard.

" So…", Max finally begun, scratching his head in confusion. " Where do we go from here? What can we do?".

" At first, we'll have to stop Voltaire". Mr. D sighed. " I have some helpful connections, but I afraid the opponent we're up against now is much more powerful than anything we've faced before".

" We're going to take him down. We'll have to", Max muttered, looking extremely solemn. " Kai's life is in our hands – and I afraid so are two more".

* * *

Trapped into a dark, small cellar that had a strong essence of death, Tyson and Ray had no idea of for how long they'd been there. They were both tied from their wrists, exhausted and terribly sore for the vicious beating they'd received from Boris. Kicks, fists, lacerations… The two boys could no longer keep on track with the ways the man had assured them that it had been a bad idea to be around Kai Hiwatari. 

" Ray?" Tyson whispered in a voice rasped by all the screams he'd given. He grimaced in pain that shoot through his body as he moved a little to see his friend. The neko-jin was slumped against the wall, eyes closed, his breathing ragged. " Ray, can you hear me?".

" Yeah". Gradually the Chinese opened his eyes halfway. " For how long… have we… been here?".

Tyson shrugged, tough it hurt.

" No idea". He felt a slash of pain flood through him and cursed in Japanese. " I'm gonna kill that bastard Boris when I get out of here".

" I'm right with you", Ray muttered, letting his eyes slip shut. Tyson saw a tear slide down his friend's cheek. For a moment he was going to say something encouraging, but decided not to. What good would words do when he couldn't believe them himself?

For a long, depressing moment the boys sat in silence, each absently thinking of escaping, but both realising it was impossible. They didn't even know where they were. How were they supposed to get out, with Boris watching them like a hawk?

Suddenly the silence was punctured by quiet steps that approached their cell, and the boys looked at each other, panic evident in their eyes. Was Boris back for another round?

_Is this what Kai had to go through for all those years?_, Tyson found himself thinking, in the middle of fear.

Slowly, torturously slowly in their opinion, the door inched, and a tall figure they couldn't identify in the dark slipped in, quickly and soundlessly approaching them. Tyson was about to scream in protest, thinking it was Boris, but went speechless (a/n: a miracle, isn't it?) as the pale, silvery moonlight revealed the dark figure for them to see.

" Tala?" he whispered, not thrusting the image his eyes gave him.

The red-head kneeled down before him, opening his ties.

" I'm sorry I couldn't come sooner", Tala whispered in a thick Russian accent. " After getting fed up with you, Boris made me train".

Looking down, Tyson saw the deep wounds covering the Russian's arms and shuttered slightly. Without another word, Tala was finished with him and moved on to Ray.

" What… What are you doing here?" Ray asked, rubbing his fists as Tala was finished.

" I heard about Kai, and decided to join Boris when he came here". The red-head sighed. " Boris escaped the prison a month ago. He's been ruling the Abbey ever since".

Both Ray and Tyson shuttered hearing this. They could only imagine what the Demolition Boys had gone through during that month. Without another word, they begun to follow Tala. The red-head led them into a shady hallway with stonewalls. Soundlessly, almost afraid to even breath, the trio sneaked through the creepy halls, all the while keeping an eye on any sounds that might suggest Boris having found them. After a time that seemed endless, they noticed the exit only a small distance away. Smiling brightly in relief, Ray and Tyson were about to thank the Russian for his help, when their expression turned into ones filled with fear. They saw a dark figure standing nearby, and it wasn't hard to guess who it was.

" So you fools actually thought that you could escape me?". Boris made a discontented sound. " I afraid rebels have to be punished".

Gasps were heard as Boris pointed at them with his gun. They all got frozen by fear. It wasn't until the first shot was fired – a warning-shot, they could tell – they finally got their ability to move back.

" Run, NOW!" Tala ordered through his teeth, and the two didn't have to be told twice.

With that the trio ran towards the door, but to their panic discovered that it was locked. They heard Boris chuckle.

" You actually thought that I would make this easy on you? Oh no, little-ones, that is _not_ how I work", Boris told them mockingly.

Dodging another two fires shot, the boys rushed towards the stairs leading upstairs. Getting there, they saw that it was just a short hall, consisting of two doors, one on the left, another on the right.. They looked at each other, and with a nod slipped in from the one on right.

Boris felt rage burning in his veins as he got upstairs as well, looking around with his gun still tightly in his hand. He looked at the two doors.

_Where the hell did they go!_

Suddenly a ice-cold smirk appeared on his face as he noticed few drops of blood glittering in the moonlight in front of the right door.

* * *

Still standing in the dark on the cliff, Kai shuttered slightly as the ice-cold wind, that had for so long cruelly embraced his face, brought a new message. A message that made cold shivers run down his spine. 

" Dranzer, can you hear me?" he asked tensely.

' _Yes, Master. I always do_'.

A small smile briefly crossed his features.

" Tyson and Ray are in trouble". He swallowed hard. " Please, help them now that I can't".

' _But Master, I can't leave you! I want to be with you!_'.

" There's nothing you can do to help me. The only thing you can do for me is to make sure that they

are safe". He paused to gather himself. " Please".

' _I shall protect them, Master. With all I've got_'.

" Thank you", he whispered, and closed his eyes as he felt his beloved bit-beast gone. " Goodbye".

As he opened his eyes again, he bowed his head and looked at the waves below him. Their call was so loud, so tempting… And he no longer had the strength to resist it. Closing his eyes again, he stretched hands and took one step ahead, falling to the emptiness.

* * *

On the nightstand to where it had been forgotten, Kai's beyblade began to glow brightly, as if it was on fire.

* * *

" Hilary?". 

Hilary let out a moan, irritated for being awoken. She felt tired. Why wouldn't that voice let her sleep?

" Hilary, sweetie, open up your eyes".

Giving a deep sigh, she gradually opened her eyes halfway, seeing two blurry faces above her. She licked her lips, her tongue felt as dry as a sandpaper.

" What… happened…?" she managed to croak out, so quietly that she didn't believe it would be heard.

" The doctor had to give you some sedatives". The faces above her cleared, she identified that the one who spoke was her father. " You were having hallucinations for the shock, but everything's okay now".

She frowned. For some reason, the things her father told her didn't seem right.

" Are you having a headache?" the other figure, her mother, inquired. " The doctor told you could have some".

" No… I'm fine". Little by little her voice was beginning to work for her again. She swallowed to speak better. " Just… tired". It wasn't exactly true, but she wanted to be alone, to think.

" It's understandable", her father told her gently, brushing her face with his fingers. " We'll leave you to rest now, okay?".

" Okay". She closed her eyes, pretending to fall asleep.

Soon enough, she heard quiet whispering, and soon after her parents slipped out of the room. As soon as the door closed behind them, her eyes snapped open. Ignoring the dizziness caused by the medication, she got up and begun to waddle her way towards the door. Making sure that no-one was there to see her leaving, she slipped into the hallway. Her head was spinning so hard that she had to support herself against the wall to stand up, and her legs seemed feeble, but the sheer power of will driving her ahead was far stronger than the obstacles. She couldn't tell how, but she knew that Kai was there, that he needed her. And this time, she wouldn't let anything stop her. She let out a deep, relieved sigh as she saw Kai's room only a slight distance away.

_You can do it_, she told herself. _For him._

Gritting her teeth, she struggled her way ahead, and soon enough she was once again standing behind the window of Kai's room. Inside, she saw Max, Kenny and… She grit her teeth. The doctor that had taken her away from Kai.

_What the hell is he doing there!_

Suddenly, the angry thoughts were interrupted as she saw Kai's terrifyingly pale face contort with pain. Something was badly wrong, she could tell. Cold shivers ran down her spine, and she gasped.

" No…", she whispered.

Gathering all her willpower, she took a step towards the door, her hand reaching out for the handle, but before she ever got there, someone took a strong hold of her, and she was pressed against a chest, so painfully tightly that it was hard to breath.

" I suggest you not to fight, little-girl", a voice that caused her cold shivers snarled. Cold steel – a knife, she figured – was pressed against her neck. " I wouldn't wish to harm you, not yet at least".

The grip that held her against the man made it hard for her to speak, but she tried nevertheless.

" V – Voltaire…", she hissed. " What… what are… you… doing?".

" I'm going to watch a little show with you", Voltaire announced, motioned quickly towards Kai

through the window with his knife before placing it back to her neck. " You see, my rebellious, annoying grandson was made to be perfect. A perfect soldier, a perfect weapon. Now, we shall see if I succeeded".

Hilary gasped, eyes widened by horror. She tried to struggle free with all her might, but to no avail.

" He's dying!". The irony grip no longer kept her from speaking, she was too determined. " You… You're killing him!".

" If Kai really is perfect, he will make it. But if he isn't, he can be sacrificed".

Voltaire's calm, toneless voice made her shiver. It was just then she truly realised that he really didn't care at all.

" He's your grandson!". She struggled again, causing the grip around her to grow stronger. " Let… me… go!".

She let out a strangled, desperate cry as the doctor suddenly rushed over to Kai, looking panicked. Everyone else in the room seemed terrified as well, she saw Max and Kenny's eyes grow huge. Shooting her gaze towards Kai's heart-monitor, she saw that the green line was flat.

" No…", she whispered, unable to believe that this was really happening.

Voltaire gave a sound that resembled a laughter.

" I afraid there's no need to struggle anymore, little-girl", the man told her in a tone that showed no emotions. " The Phoenix has turned into ashes – for good".

TBC?

* * *

A/N: We're approaching the end, I afraid. What would you like it to be like? Sad or happy? Give it a vote. 

And don't forget to vote who gets Kai! There's a tie, so who knows what might happen with just one vote!

Bye for now!


	13. Too late?

A/N: First of all, thanks for all your votes and reviews!  
And indeed, the votes of yours have made a difference! There is no more a tie, but a close-call, so one vote can still change everything.  
ReKa fans, this will most likely please you. The Tiger has been catching up fast! Few more votes, and he will challenge the current leader.  
Okay, okay, on with the story.

* * *

Hiding in a creepy, dusty room, three boys held their breaths as the door-handle twitched a little, and the door opened soundlessly, torturously slowly. As the door opened, they saw Boris Balkov stood in the doorway, glowing in the moonlight. The gun in his hand seemed to be shining.

" I'm going to count to three, boys", the man announced. " The sooner you choose to show up, the less this is going to hurt".

None of the three moved, and after Boris had slowly done the counting, his eyes flashed dangerously and he pulled up the gun.

" As you wish", the man said, starting to walk around the room. " But I did warn you".

Boris' gaze suddenly detected another drop of blood before a huge, antique casket, and a cruel smirk revealed his teeth. With a look of a predator in his eyes, he soundlessly begun to approach it.

From his own hiding-place, Tala could see where Boris was going and felt his heart skip a beat. Tyson was hiding behind the casket!

I've gotta do something! 

Taking a deep breath, he stepped up, revealing himself to Boris. The man turned his head, and his eyes glowed evilly as he locked his gaze to Tala's resolute blue orbs. The red-head showed no fear.

" Do you have a death-wish, Tala?" Boris inquired, approaching him.

Tala's eyes flashed.

" It's 'bout time to show you that there's at least one person still kicking in this world, who wont bow down to you", he hissed through clenched teeth.

Boris was at that moment right before him, and to reward his bravery the man stroke his fist painfully right in the middle of his face. Giving a small, enraged moan, the Russian flew to the floor.

" You've been very brave, but you're also a filthy traitor". Boris looked at him, eyes dark. " Do you know what the Abbey-rules say about traitors, Tala?".

Eyes burning, the Russian looked straight into his trainer's sinister eyes.

" Yes".

" Good". Boris raised his gun, pointing it straight to Tala's forehead. " Remember Tala, you chose this way".

" As if you had ever given them much of a choice", a new, female voice suddenly hissed from behind Boris.

Surprised and outraged, Boris turned his head to see the intruder. He never got a chance to see her, however, before a huge vase was smashed against his head. After wavering for a while, the man finally fell down, unconscious.

Lifting his head from Boris's unmoving form, Tala looked in disbelief at the girl before him. She had long, fire-red hair that fell for a long way down her back. She had red pants and an orange-red top. Her eyes, that held the same colour as her hair, seemed to be burning.

Tala knew immediately who the girl was, and gave a gasp of shock.

" How?" he whispered.

Slowly leaving their hiding-places, Tyson and Ray both became stunned as they saw the girl. As she turned her head to look at them, Ray found himself shaking as a ridiculous thought struck him.

" You…", he whispered. " Dranzer?".

The girl nodded solemnly.

" Yes. My Master send me to help you".

Tyson blinked his eyes, unable to understand what was going on.

" But… How?". He blinked again. " How did Kai…?".

Dranzer shook her head to interrupt him.

" There's no time for explanations". Her eyes showed deep concern. " 'Til today, I've managed to keep Kai alive with my powers, but now that I'm no longer with him…".

" He's running out of time", Ray filled, eyes widening. " We've gotta go, NOW!".

" Wait!". They looked at Tala. " What are we going to do with Boris? He'll wake up any minute now!".

They didn't have to wait for the answer for too long. Running steps were heard from the stairs, and after a while a group of polices rushed into the room, their guns prepared. Seeing that there was nothing going on, the leader of the group put out his gun and frowned.

" Neighbours reported us that shots were heard from here". Just then he saw Boris laying on the floor. " What the heck happened!".

" Hey Stan, isn't that Boris Balkov, the one we've been searching for a month?" one of the policemen suddenly asked before the teens had a chance to talk.

The leader of the group gasped as he looked at the man on the floor again.

" Yeah, he is". He looked at the teens. " Look, I'll have to ask you some questions…".

" Can't that wait 'til later!" Tyson cut in, sounding like was on the verge of tears (which was probably the case). " Look, we've gotta get to the hospital, it's a matter of life and death!".

The leader of the group, Stan as they now knew him, sighed.

" I'm sorry, but I'm not allowed to let you leave before everything's sorted out", he replied.

" Just put one of your men with us!". Ray was really close to loosing his temper completely, and he had to tighten his fists not to hurt someone. " We're running out of time here!".

Seeing the anxiety in the four teens' eyes, Stan sighed again and looked at one of his men.

" Rex, would you go with them? Don't let them out of your sight".

" I won't", the one introduced as Rex promised, looking at the teens. " Lets go then".

The group didn't have to be told twice. Running faster than ever in their lives, they rushed downstairs and towards Rex's patrol-car, praying that they weren't too late.

* * *

Hilary struggled desperately and felt tears run down her face as he witnessed the doctor and two nurses' desperate attempts to make Kai's heart beat again. She wanted to scream, wanted to so badly, but the crushing grip Voltaire still had on her prevented her.

" I think this is getting rather boring. Lets go", Voltaire announced.

Powerless to stop the man, Hilary let him drag her along, looking at Kai with tears in her eyes.

_Fight, please! Don't leave me! KAI! _

* * *

Inside the room, Dr. Nichols had strands of sweat running down his face as he once again tried to make the boy fight for his life.

" 3… 2… 1… CLEAR!".

Another jolt made Kai twitch, but he still refused to breath, refused to come back.

" C'mon, boy, fight!" he muttered, tough he knew that Kai couldn't hear him.

Suddenly he remembered something and turned his head to see the two deeply shocked, crying boys still standing behind him and watching. He then looked at another one of the nurses.

" Stella, would you guide the boys away?" he asked in a weary voice, deeply exhausted.

With a nod, the nurse did as ordered and gently escorted the shaken boys out of the room. Taking a deep breath, he prepared himself for another attempt.

" 3… 2… 1… CLEAR!".

* * *

Meanwhile, Hilary was dragged from a small door into a corridor, towards stairs that lead downstairs. She wanted to fight Voltaire and get to Kai, but she wasn't strong enough and the hands around her made it hard to breath.

" Where… are you… taking me?" she managed to ask, tough talking was almost impossible.

" I'm going to leave this rotten place, and for that, I need a shield". He pulled her even closer, and her breath was cached into her throat. " And when I'm safe, you'll follow my pathetic grandson".

" If anyone is pathetic, it's you", Mr. Dickinson's voice suddenly hissed. Turning around, they saw the man standing not too far away, with five polices behind him. " You're going nowhere but jail".

Hilary gave a small, wheezing gasp as the knife on her throat squeezed closer.

" Do you wish me to kill this girl, Stanley?".

" Make another move, and these men are more than pleased to shoot you", Mr. D growled, his usually gentle face filled with hatred and disgust. " Don't push it, Voltaire".

Slowly, so slowly that Hilary thought it wasn't for real, the hands around her released and the knife fell to the floor. As the police roughly graphed Voltaire and handcuffed him, Mr Dickinson gently took her into his arms. She was surprised to notice the tears running down her cheeks.

_For how long have I been crying?_, she wondered.

The thought, however, was soon pushed aside as the image of Kai rushed back into her mind. She looked at Mr. D, widened eyes filled with panic and anguish.

" Kai…", she whispered in a voice that clearly gave out everything she was feeling.

Looking more solemn than ever before, Mr. D nodded, and without saying a word they started to run towards Kai's room, praying that they weren't too late.

* * *

A short while later, a patrol-car pulled up to the hospital's parking-lot, and without waiting another second the four teens begun to dart towards the building, hardly noticing Rex who desperately tried to keep up with them.

None of them could count the stairs they'd run as the familiar hallway was finally ahead of them.

" Kai's room… should be… somewhere… there…", Ray panted heavily.

" Thank… God!" Tyson gasped, barely able to breath.

The exhaustion was soon pushed aside as they came to the hallway and the sight greeted them. They all stopped dead on their tracks. Hilary was crying harder than they'd ever seen her cry before in Mr. Dickinson's arms, and the man couldn't hold back his tears either. Max had fallen to a seat, seeming paralysed, and they could all see tears running down his pale cheeks. Kenny was sitting near Max, his brown hair covering his eyes, they could clearly see that he was shivering. In front of the group stood Dr. Nichols, looking sad and exhausted, saying something they couldn't make out.

Giving each other worried looks, they walked up to the group.

" Thank goodness you're alright!" Max sobbed when seeing Tyson.

The navy-hared teen barely noticed his friend. His focus was on Dr. Nichols.

" What's going on?" he demanded. The man didn't reply, and he had to tighten his fists not to do anything he'd regret later on. " Look, I need see Kai! It's vital!".

" I… I'm sorry, but… I afraid it's too late". The man gulped, almost in tears. " He died ten minutes ago".

TBC.

* * *

A/N: Oh Gods, you are gonna kill me now, aren't you? But, hold down your axes and knives 'til the next chapter, please! This story wont be going anywhere if you murder me now…  
So… Will the Phoenix rise from the ashes once more – or will Voltaire win? Next chapter will tell…  
And yes, keep reviewing and voting! The saying 'one vote can make a difference' might sound lame, but it's true! 


	14. Far away

A/N: Well, well, it seems that you really want Kai to live! (Who wouldn't!)

The song in this chapter is Nickelback's "Far away", btw, and I DO NOT think I owe any of it (so you'll still get to keep those sues of yours, hah!).

Okay, without any further babbling, on with the story. Second last chapter, btw.

_

* * *

_

_This time, This place_

_Misused, Mistakes_

_Too long, Too late _

_Who was I to make you wait_

* * *

" He died ten minutes ago".

Tyson couldn't believe the words. It was impossible, ridiculous! Kai… Kai couldn't be dead!

" Phoenix doesn't die", he whispered out loud. His gaze then shot to Dranzer, who was standing right behind him, crying quietly and looking like she'd fall any moment. " He's your Master, right? Shouldn't you feel it if he was gone?".

The girl looked at him with glassed eyes.

" I… I don't… know…".

" We've gotta fight, damnit!". He knew that he was being irrational, but couldn't hold himself back. This was Kai's life they were talking about! " He always fought for us, he never gave up on us! We can't give up on him now!".

" Please, Dr. Nichols". This time it was Hilary who spoke. She'd moved away from Mr. Dickinson, and now stood close to the doctor. " Give us five minutes. If… If nothing happens in that time, then…". She trailed off.

Looking at the desperate, devastated teens, Dr. Nichols decided that there was no telling them it wasn't okay to try and help their friend. He nodded, afraid that he was making a mistake.

" Okay then. But only five minutes". He sighed. " I can't let all of you in. Only two of you can go".

The teens looked at each other.

" I'm the one who broke him", Tyson finally spoke quietly. " I should be the one to fix him as well".

The others gave an accepting nod, knowing that there was no way the Dragon could be kept away.

" I'm going too", Hilary announced. " Maybe… Maybe he hears me".

" Perhaps I can help you", Dranzer spoke. " We have a connection. I can help you reach out for him".

" Only two can go in", Dr. Nichols reminded, trying his hardest to sound authoritative.

" This girl is no human", Tyson announced as he took Dranzer's hand and pulled her in, followed by Hilary.

As the three went in and gathered around Kai, Ray stepped up to the window of the room, placing his hand on it. Tears welled in his eyes as his lips formed voiceless prayers. The desperate, tear-filled gaze of his amber eyes was locked to Kai. Gods, the Phoenix was so pale, so lifeless, lips already blue… It was almost impossible to believe that anything could bring the boy back.

He almost yelped of frighten as a hand was suddenly placed on his shoulder. Looking up, he saw Tala's stern face.

" Look, Kai is a fighter. If anyone can pull through this, it's him. I should know", the Russian whispered, so quietly that the others couldn't hear.

Ray found himself giving a faint smile.

" Thanks".

With that, he turned to look at Kai again, praying harder than ever in his life.

Please Kai… You've gotta fight… Show us how tough you are, this one time.

In the room, Tyson and Hilary weren't exactly sure of what to do.

" Take Kai's hand and mine, then focus", Dranzer guided, as if reading their minds. " I can't hold the connection for long, so whatever you want to say, do it fast".

The two nodded. Taking Kai's hand, they both shivered by how cold and lifeless it felt. After a while they both closed their eyes, concentrating harder than ever in their lives.

_

* * *

_

_Just one chance_

_Just one breath_

_Just in case there's just one left_

_'Cause you know,_

_you know, you know…_

* * *

Kai had no idea of for how long he'd been sinking into the dark, ice-cold water. He felt tired, more exhausted than ever before, and it felt like all his strength had left him the moment he'd hit the water. A while ago slashes of pain had been attacking him, but now they were gone. All he could feel was coldness, tough his body was already becoming numb to it. He was vaguely aware of the fact that he wasn't breathing anymore, and a teeny part of him told him it wasn't normal. But he didn't really care. All he wanted was to close his eyes and drift into a sleep.

Suddenly a chorus of three voices filled his mind, all calling his name, all anxious.

_Hilary, Ray and… Tyson?_ He blinked in disbelief. _But how…?_

' _Because I'm helping them_', a familiar, gentle voice of his bit-beast told him. '_You must breath, Master. Your time hasn't come yet_'.

He blinked again, but this time it was for the stinging behind his eyes.

I… I afraid I can't… believe you… 

' _Please, Master, you have to!_'. She sounded desperate. ' _This is not the end, Master! They're all reaching out for you! Let them! This… This isn't supposed to end this way!_'.

Too tired to fight it, Kai let his friends in. He was immediately bombarded by memories.

_

* * *

_

_That I love you_

_I have loved you all along_

_And I miss you_

_Been far away for far too long_

_I keep dreaming you'll be with me_

_and you'll never go_

_Stop breathing if_

_I don't see you anymore_

* * *

/ _The room was so dark that it was hard to see, but it didn't bother the Phoenix standing before the window. Stars and moon in the sky gave him all the light he needed. The window was open, and cool autumn-breeze gently caressed his face. Kai suddenly felt a small smile pulling the corners of his lips. For some odd reason, the breeze, no matter how cold it was, gave him a feeling that he was safe, protected. _

" _Kai, what are you doing? It's freezing in here!"._

_The Phoenix mentally cursed himself as he was startled by the voice. He was never careless, he never let anyone surprise him like this! Peering over his shoulder, he saw Tyson standing on the doorway. For some reason the presence of the Dragon made him feel uncomfortable, it was hard for him to keep his shield up when the boy was near. Furious, more at himself than Tyson, he turned his head again and looked at the stars shining high up in the sky. _

" _Go away, Granger", he growled, but it came out much more feebly than he would've liked._

_The approaching steps told that they hadn't convinced Tyson, either._

" _Stop pushing me away, Kai". A hand landed on his shoulder, making him jolt. " I'm not an enemy. I'm not going to hurt you"._

_He took a quick glance at the Dragon again, and noticed that he was much too close for his liking._

" _I don't need…"._

" … _protection? Kai, yes you do. You're not invincible, nor immortal. Look, everybody needs someone to lean on to"._

" _What makes you think that you're the one I want to lean on to?" he bit out._

_Other hand still on his shoulder, Tyson took his chin with his free hand and turned his head gently, forcing him to look directly at the Dragon. Slowly Tyson's hand left his chin and slid down to his chest, stopping to his heart which was beating furiously._

" _Because I'm not afraid of being burned by your fire", the Dragon whispered. Midnight-blue orbs were filled with pleading. " Please, let me in, because I'm not going anywhere"._

_Tyson took a step closer, wrapping both of his hands around Kai's waist. At first the mighty Phoenix tried to break free, but noticing that Tyson wasn't going to let go of him he slowly gave in, relaxing to the touch. Encouraged by his acceptance, Tyson leaned in and Kai felt his entire body jolt as the Dragon's lips found his. As the first shock passed, he allowed his eyes slip shut and chose to return the kiss. And as Tyson's hands around him tightened, it became clear that there was no way out – and actually, he didn't even want to get out._

_Their destructive, dangerous connection was formed._ /

_

* * *

_

_On my knees, I'll ask_

_Last chance for one last dance_

_'Cause with you, I'd withstand_

_All of hell to hold your hand_

_I'd give it all_

_I'd give for us_

_Give anything but I won't give up_

_'Cause you know,_

_you know, you know…_

* * *

/ _Kai's eyes reflected the enchanting display of colourful lights as he watched the rockets paint the sky. Stood by a small bridge, leaning on the railing, he allowed himself to sink into the beautiful patterns. Suddenly the magic disappeared as he felt he was no longer alone. Turning his head slightly, he saw Hilary approaching him, gazing at the multicoloured sky. Neither one of them said a word or expected the other one to as she stood beside him, also leaning on the railing. For a longest time they silently watched the rockets, both lost in their own thoughts. Suddenly he shuddered slightly in surprise as Hilary's small hand slowly took his and squeezed it gently. After hesitating for a short moment, he returned the gesture. And so they stood there for a longest time, even after there were no longer rockets in the sky, hands intertwined, not saying a word. _

_Whether they were ready to admit it to themselves or not, one thing was for certain. A connection was formed between them, different from Kai and Tyson's, but still no less than as strong._ /

_

* * *

_

_So far away_

_Been far away for far too long_

_So far away_

_Been far away for far too long_

_But you know, you know, you know…_

* * *

/ _" Kai! KAI!"._

_Kai finally snapped out of his nightmare, gasping desperately and clenching his hand against his heart. It took him for a long time to realise that the nightmare wasn't true, that he was no longer in his grandfather's hands._

" _Are you alright?"._

_It wasn't until that moment he became aware of the arms around him. The arms that had shook him awake._

" _R – Ray?". He blinked his eyes, wishing that he could've told the neko-jin to get of off him, but he didn't want to. For some reason, the arms made him feel calm, relaxed._

" _You okay?" Ray softly repeated the question, stroking his hair. " Sh… It was just a dream". _

_He leaned backwards, against Ray's chest. Surprised by the normally cold boy's sudden need of support, Ray tightened his hold of him, pulling him closer. Just then Kai noticed that he was quivering._

" _I'm okay", he murmured quietly, letting his eyes slip shut. " Just…". He couldn't find the word._

" _Shaken?" Ray suggested gently. " It's okay. Everybody has nightmares sometimes". Surprising them both, Ray pressed a tender kiss to his silvery bangs. " Now go back to sleep. I'm not going anywhere"._

_For some reason, it was easy for Kai to believe the Tiger. Taking a small breath, he let the sleep overcome him, and drifted into a blissful dream in Ray's protective arms. What he did not know, was that the neko-jin stayed up all night, guarding his sleep, not for a second letting go of him._

_And yes, that night a third connection was formed. Again different from the last ones, but nevertheless as strong._ /

_

* * *

_

_I wanted_

_I wanted you to stay_

_'Cause I needed_

_I need to hear you say_

_That I love you_

_I have loved you all along_

_And I forgive you_

_For being away for far too long_

* * *

Little by little, Kai felt that the water around him wasn't as cold and as dark anymore. The stinging behind his eyes got unbearable.Dranzer… 

' _Follow their call, Master. We're all waiting for you_'.

He closed his eyes and smiled, feeling a bright, pure-white light surround him like a soft blanket.

_

* * *

_

_So keep breathing_

_'Cause I'm not leaving you anymore_

_Believe it_

_Hold on to me and, never let me go_

_Keep breathing_

_'Cause I'm not leaving you anymore_

_Believe it_

* * *

Still sitting beside Kai, Tyson and Hilary (and Ray as well behind the window) snapped their eyes open as they felt the connection break. Looking around, they noticed that Dranzer was gone. Anxiousness, worry and desperate hope filled them as they looked down at Kai. Both gasped as they saw a single tear roll across his snow-white cheek. Looking at Kai's chest, they both became stunned. It was racing and lowering furiously, each breath being a struggle. Kai was breathing!

" K – Kai?" Tyson whispered, touching his love's face with the hand that had held Dranzer's.

" Come on, open up your eyes". Hilary smiled, not paying any attention to her tears of joy. " It's going to be okay".

Gradually, like in a slowed motion, Kai's eyes fluttered open. For a longest time the Phoenix looked at them, seeming puzzled and disbelieving. Suddenly, the boy frowned and placed his hand to his chest.

" Damnit… It… h-hurts…", he whispered, so quietly that it was hard to hear.

Despite the words, Tyson and Hilary were overwhelmed by joy.

" It's okay, Kai", Tyson assured him, laughing through his tears. " You really gave us a scare, you bastard! You almost died on us!".

Kai, seeming to recover from the worst attack of pain, blinked as he looked at Tyson.

" I… I thought you… left…".

" Sh…". This time it was Hilary who spoke. " You'll have plenty of time to talk later. Right now, you need rest. You've had a hard time".

Giving a small, weak nod, Kai slowly allowed his eyes to slip shut. Soon after the Phoenix peacefully fell asleep. Both Hilary and Tyson were smiling as they looked at each other. They'd done the impossible. They'd brought the Phoenix back from the ashes.

_

* * *

_

_Hold on to me and, never let me go_

_Keep breathing_

_Hold on to me and, never let me go_

_Keep breathing_

_Hold on to me and, never let me go_

**

* * *

**

**Three weeks later.**

The airport was busy as Tala stood there, taking a look at his watch.

_He's late_, he declared to himself.

Looking up again, he gave a smirk as he saw the familiar person approaching him.

" I thought you wouldn't come after all", he noted.

Kai's smirk widened.

" You really should know me better than that".

After his waking up (or resurrection, as the small group knew to call it), Kai remembered everything. It wasn't entirely good thing: living the hell of his past all over again was almost unbearable for the Russian, but with time and the support of his friends Kai seemed to be getting there. He was no longer locked up into himself, and words weren't enough to describe how glad the others were to have him back. There was a long road ahead of Kai, however: many more painful doors would have to be opened and thousands of feelings and memories sorted out, but with the excellent therapist Mr. Dickinson had found, they knew that Kai would eventually recover. Tala could even find the old fire in his friend's eyes.

" I'll be back again as soon as I can", Tala promised as they walked towards the gate from where his flight would leave. " After the damage Boris managed to do it might take a while, tough".

" It's okay. After all, we can always call or mail".

The final announce for Tala's flight came, and the friends looked at each other, smiling slightly.

" Thank you", Kai whispered, feeling that it had to be said. " For all you did".

" Stop being meek, Hiwatari. It doesn't suit you", Tale grinned.

They shared a quick hug, during which Tala had suddenly became solemn.

" Okay, that face never means anything good", Kai predicted.

" I want to give you an advice", Tala announced. " Look, we both know that in that stubborn head of yours, you know who your heart belongs to. You need to clear it out to them, before it's too late".

Kai smirked.

" I will, I will, if that makes you quit going on and on about it".

Returning the smirk, Tala gave Kai a one last glance before turning around and starting to walk away. Right before the red-head was out of Kai's sight, he turned around and waved quickly.

" _Bye, Kai! Good luck!_" Tala told him in Russian.

Kai smiled as Tala turned around again and disappeared.

" _To you too, friend. Hope I'll see you soon_".

With that, he too turned around and disappeared into the crowd.

* * *

A/N: The next chapter will be the last one, so…

**Last chance to vote, people!**

And boy its tight! The current leader has two votes more than the following two who are even, so anything can still happen!

I know that some of you have given several votes, but unfortunately I can only accept one per person. After all, that's how all elections work, ne? (Feel free to protest; this is my fist fic, so I have basically no idea of how these things usually work.) Every review, however, will be registered. (Not that I'm hinting or anything…)

But as for the rest of you…

**Go and vote – now or never!**

Or you can only blame yourselves if the Phoenix falls into wrong arms…


	15. AN: About the votecounting

I've been thinking about that damn vote-counting thing, and I think I've changed my mind.

You see, it's the majority of you who've voted several times, and I would personally much rather count all votes than start separating them.

So… Go and vote as many times as you like. After all, every single vote is equally valuable. :) BUT, if you wish to protest, do so now, and I'll consider changing my mind – AGAIN.

I think I'm sending in the LAST chapter some time next week, so until then…

**Go and vote! This is your last chance!**

And btw, I'm sorry if I've made you rip your hair off by this bouncing around, but try to hang in there, 'k?

So long for now!

P.S.: And once again, thanks for ALL your votes and reviews! As I've told you, this is my very first fic, so it has really warmed my heart! (snif)

PPS: I'm thinking of erasing this message while sending the last chappy, and I feel stupid of asking this, but… IF I will erase this, will all votes/reviews disappear along? It would be nice if someone would be able to answer… But, don't you worry, I'll count the votes beforehand and add all the reviews to the last chapter just in case!


	16. Epilogue

A/N: And here comes the long-waited last chapter! **Yeah!  
**First of all, I want to thank all those who have voted and reviewed from the bottom of my heart! This story would've never come to an end without you. **THANK YOU!**  
Okay, I bet you are all just dying to know who won, aren't you? I have no heart to keep the result from you any longer, so here it comes…  
Counting all votes, Hilary turned out to win Kai's heart with one vote. (Talking about tight race, huh?) Tyson finished up second, and poor Ray was left into third place.  
Just for curiosity, I also counted the votes so that I allowed only one vote per person. The result would've been the same, tough Hilary's victory would've been even clearer, so there's no second guesses with who won, don't you think?  
There's something I've been thinking about for quite some time now… Since I had to make three different endings – I naturally couldn't know who would win – it would be quite a waste of time and energy not to send them out, right? So… How would you feel if I send alternative endings with Tyson and Ray winning Kai's heart? Agreements and objections will both be taken into consideration.  
But now… To the very last chapter, people! I was told to write like never before, and God forbid I tried! So here it finally is. KaHil fans, this is for you! Hope you'll enjoy!

* * *

Snowflakes were glittering like diamonds in Kai's hair as he sat on a small bridge nearby the cabin Mr. Dickinson had rented for the team. It was their last night in the cabin, but he didn't exactly feel like spending it with his friends. After all the fussing they'd done around him after he was finally released from the hospital, he desperately needed a moment alone, needed a proper chance to gather his thoughts.

He had no idea of for how long he'd been sitting there when he suddenly heard snow rustling as someone approached him. Turning his head, he saw Hilary walking towards him.

" Hi", he greeted, not exactly sure of what to say to the girl.

" We were beginning to get worried", Hilary announced as she took a seat beside him from the bridge-railing. " You should come inside before you catch a cold". She seemed to make a small frown. " What are you doing in here at this hour, anyways?".

" I'm fine", he assured her, purposely ignoring the latter question for the time being.

After that a content silence fell upon them as they watched the beautiful, snow-covered landscape. Neither felt a particular need to talk: after all, they had always agreed that actions spoke louder than words.

But in the end, Kai chose to break the silence. There were many things that needed to be said, but he chose to push them aside for a little while longer. Instead he looked at the sky that had for quite some time held a mysterious, deep shade of blue. Stars seemed so bright against it that they seemed to be burning. " When I was at the Abbey, I always climbed up to the roof at night, tough it was forbidden". Funny. He'd never told anyone about his past before, but… Perhaps it was a change for the better.

Hilary seemed slightly surprised by his words as well, but soon recovered. " Why?" she asked gently, knowing how hesitant Kai still was about sharing this part of him with her. She didn't want to pressure him, especially now that he was finally beginning to bare this new side of him to her.

" I wanted to see the stars". For a while a slight smile crossed his lips as memories, for once pleasant and painless ones, came to his mind. " My mom always told me stories about them. She taught me every constellation".

Looking at the stars as well, Hilary nodded, smiling as she could almost picture small Kai Hiwatari sitting in his mother's lap, studying the stars with the deep frown he always got when he was concentrating really hard on something. After a short silence, she picked one constellation and pointed it. " What's that called?".

Kai smiled, giving her a quick, gentle look before looking at the stars again. " It's Lion".

Hilary smiled as well, more brightly than she had for over a year. Of course she had known that Kai's memory was back, but it was still a whole another thing to see it this loud and clear.

When they were together, before the entire nightmare of Kai being beaten up and loosing his memory, he had always called her little-lion when they were alone. Back then she had hated the silly pet-name, but at the moment no name could've sounded better in her ears.

They sat in silence for few moments, watching in awe as stars light up the sky like small fires.

All of sudden, Kai remembered the words Tala had said to him before the redhead headed back to Russia.

_" Look, we both know that in that stubborn head of yours, you know who your heart belongs to. You need to clear it out to them, before it's too late"._

He knew that Tala had been right. He couldn't make the ones he cared about the most wait forever, or he would end up loosing them.

Besides, he _did_ know who his heart belonged to. It had been obvious from the begin with. After all, we can all have only one chosen of heart.

" I'm sorry", he whispered, breaking the silence.

Hilary seemed confused as she looked at him. " What for?".

He gave a small laughter. " Look, I know that I haven't exactly been the easiest person lately. I've put you and Tyson through hell". He laughed bitterly. " Some brave and strong person I am, huh?".

" It's only human to be confused, Kai", Hilary told him, smiling slightly. " I thought you'd learned that by now".

Small smile playing on his lips, Kai shrugged. " I suppose I'm a slow learner in some things, then".

Hilary smirked. " Can't argue you with that".

Yet another comfortable silence fell upon them as they kept looking at the stars, enchanted by their beauty.

Eventually Hilary got up and stretched. " I think we should go inside before you'll really catch a cold. I don't know about you, but I'm freezing to the bone".

" Hil, wait, there's… I need to tell you something", Kai spoke out, looking at her with a strange look in his eyes that she'd never seen in them before.

" What is it?" she asked, slightly alarmed. Kai seemed far too serious to her liking.

A soft look appeared into Kai's eyes. " Before we go inside, I want you to know that I'm not confused anymore".

His words made her shiver. " What do you mean?" she whispered, clenching her hands into tight fists.

It wasn't until then Kai got up from the railing. Everything seemed to be moving in a slowed motion as he walked up to her and offered her his hand. Without a slightest hesitation she took it, and became amazed by how warm it was after all the time he'd spent outside. Smiling, he gave her hand a gentle squeeze and, encouraged by his gesture, she returned it and snuggled closer to his warmth, resting her head against his shoulder with a smile grazing her lips.

The long doubt had finally came to an end.

Tough she was pretty sure that it was just her imagination, she could've sworn she heard Kai whisper in Russian. " It was you all along".

And so they walked up to the cabin, hand in hand, prepared to take whatever strikes destiny might've meant for them. Tough there'd be a long, rocky road ahead of them, nothing would be unbearable as long as they'd face it together.

**

* * *

**

**End.**

* * *

A/N: Oh my gosh, it's really completed! **YES!** Once again, thank you so much for reading! And just so that you would know… Reviews will still be read… And remember to comment those alternative endings, 'k?  
Okay, towards new adventures!  
So long for now! Be safe! 


	17. Alternative ending 1 Tyson

A/N: I'm not sure if you want it or not, but I decided to send these alternative endings as I feel you should be offered a choice. After all, many of you voted for someone else than Hilary and I believe that you should all be appreciated.

Well, all TyKa fans who've been patient enough with me to make it this far, this is for all of you – and especially to you, Miako6! I hope you read this! Hope you'll all enjoy!

* * *

Just like so many times before during the past three weeks, Kai again sat on the porch of the cabin, admiring the stars shining above him. Before the desire for power and glory had corrupted him, Voltaire had always told him stories about them. One of the stories was particularly well in the young Russian's mind. According to a tale, great and courageous souls would become stars after their mortal path was through. From the skies they'd be shining for people, who'd never forget about their heroes. For a longest time Kai had dreamt about becoming a star one day, but Voltaire had soon enough shaken the childish dream out of his grandson's head. (A/N: I'm not sure if I read thistale from somewhere, so I can't take full credit.)

A small, bitter laughter escaped from Kai.

" What a courageous soul I am", he muttered sarcastically to himself.

" But you are!" a voice said behind him, startling him. Turning his head, he saw Tyson standing behind him with a soft look upon his face. " You are the bravest person I know, Kai".

Giving a hint of a smile, Kai once again turned his attention to the stars.

" Hn", he commented.

Sighing, Tyson hesitated for a moment, then walked up to him and sat beside him, not asking for or needing a permission. For a longest time silence occupied them.

" I'm sorry. I'm so sorry", Tyson suddenly whispered, tears evident in his voice.

Kai gave the Dragon a quick look, confused.

" For what?".  
" Are you kidding!" Tyson snorted, first glittering tears rolling. " I… I hurt you so badly, worse than I've hurt any of my opponents! You… You almost died because of me!".

For a while Kai pondered whether to comfort the Dragon or not. Eventually, he chose not to. They weren't at the point where they could soothe each other just yet.

" You did hurt me. Badly", he admitted bluntly, eyes on the stars. " But it wasn't your fault that I almost…". He paused. " It was my own stupidity".

Tyson looked at him with teary eyes, seeming to debate whether to believe him or not.

" I wouldn't lie to you, Granger", he assured the bluenette.

Deciding to believe him, Tyson nodded and lifted his head to look at the stars. A new silence fell on them as they both drifted into their thoughts.

" I lost you for a while", Tyson suddenly whispered, looking at him, eyes in tears again. " You have no idea of how horrible it felt, how much it hurt when our connection was cut". Tyson looked away, tears rolling to his cheeks. " A part of me died as well".

Kai felt something in his heart shift as he looked at the Dragon beside him. His eyes softened, and giving in to the temptation he took Tyson's hand in his, giving it a small squeeze.

" You never gave up on me, Tyson", he whispered.

Tyson's still teary eyes were widened with disbelief as the boy looked at him, not thrusting the message his ears were sending him. They looked at each other in silence, and after a second fresh new tears, this time not ones of sadness, shone in Tyson's midnight-blue eyes.

" You never called me by my first name", the Dragon whispered. " Not even when were together, not even once".

Kai smiled softly, letting his cold mask slip off completely. It was a huge chance he was taking when bearing himself so completely for Tyson to see, but for once he wasn't afraid of letting someone see the real him.

" Lets call it a sign of a new start", he suggested gently, so quietly that Tyson barely heard him.

Tyson blinked, seeming deeply confused.

" 'A new start'?" the Dragon repeated, hope clear in his tone. " A new start of what?".

Kai looked away from Tyson, letting his gaze wander up to the stars as if seeking for strength, then looked back at Tyson again.

" I don't know", he whispered.

Tyson nodded. Even tough a well-trained smile appeared on his face soon after, for a brief moment Kai could see the hurt on the Dragon's face. Tyson could fool anyone else with that mask of his, but not him.

" Funny", he murmured after a small silence. " I thought I was the only one wearing a mask, but apparently I was wrong".

Tyson blinked in confusion once again, then looked at his hand still holding Kai's.

" Look, I wasn't expecting any miracles", Tyson muttered, taking a quick glance at him before looking away again. " We have tons of things to sort out before we're even friends again". Tyson looked at him in the eyes, and this time the smile on his face was a real one. " But I'm ready for it. I can wait, no matter for how long it takes". Tyson's smile widened. " And I know that we'll make it in the end. I thrust on the bond between us".

Kai couldn't help smiling. Still, after everything they'd been through, Tyson was so filled with optimism and hope.

" You really are something special, Tyson", he whispered.

Tyson beamed when hearing the name Kai was still getting used to using. Another silence fell on them as both drifted into their thoughts once more.

" Kai… There's something I've been wanting to ask you", Tyson suddenly announced, almost shyly.

" Hmm?".

" After all I put you through, after I'd been so stupid… How is it possible that you still love me?" the Dragon whispered the question.

Kai grinned.

" Because there's no other dragon in this world to take your place", he replied.

Smiling brighter than the stars above, Tyson gently let go of his hand and shifted closer to him. He also shifted a little, so that they were facing each other. They were so close that they could feel each other's warm breaths in the cold night. After hesitating for a long moment, Tyson wrapped both of his arms around Kai's waist and pulled the Phoenix even closer, placing his head against Kai's warm chest. It wasn't until then Kai noticed that Tyson was shivering from the cold, and, eyes softening, he removed his smooth, warming white scarf and gently wrapped it around Tyson. The Dragon gave him a surprised look, but seeing the gentle look in his eyes smiled and snuggled closer to the Phoenix. Smiling as well, Kai wrapped his hands tightly around the boy and buried his face into Tyson's navy-blue hair, closing his eyes.

And so they remained for a longest time, enjoying the warmth of each other's bodies. They both realised that future wouldn't be easy for them, but neither was afraid anymore. For now they both knew that no matter what was to come, they'd never let go of each other again.

**

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**End.**

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	18. Alternative ending 2 Ray

A/N: I'm not sure if you want it or not, but I decided to send these alternative endings as I feel you should be offered a choice. After all, many of you voted for someone else than Hilary and I believe that you should all be appreciated.

So, all ReKa fans, this is for you! I sincerely hope you'll enjoy!

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It was already night when Kai sat on the bench outside the cabin, looking intently at the stars above. When he was a child, his mother had told him that one day, when his journey in this world should end, he'd become a star as well. And from up there, he'd be watching and guiding the ones he'd left behind him. Now as a teen, Kai wanted to believe the story more than ever. So many of those he'd cared about had left him. From the bottom of his heart he wanted to think that they were still up there, watching him, looking after him in their silent way.

" _I need your guidance, mama_", he whispered in Russian, almost sounding like a lost little child. He gave a deep breath. " _I don't know what to do, how to feel…_". He squeezed his eyes tightly shut to keep the tears from coming. " _Mama, I need you. I miss you_".

" Kai?". The familiar voice was filled with concern. Steps approached him, and after a while of hesitation, someone sat beside him. " You okay?".

" Yeah". The answer had to be forced out, for his mouth seemed unwilling to work for him.

After another moment of hesitation, Ray's hand gently took his, squeezing it.

" Rough night?".

He nodded, still not opening his eyes in fear of braking down. For a while he wanted to tell that it was the anniversary of his parents' death, but chose not to. His nightmares couldn't become Ray's.

He didn't know for how long they'd remained in silence before Ray finally spoke.

" Kai, I'm here for you", the Chinese told gently, tightening his grip on his hand. " I'm not going anywhere. Not ever".

A tear Kai couldn't hold back rolled to his cheek, so hot that it seemed to be burning.

" You have no idea of how many people have told me that before", he whispered before he could stop himself. " And they all left".

Slowly Ray let go of his hand, and put his arm around him, tenderly pulling him close.

" I'm not going anywhere", Ray repeated quietly, yet so firmly that there was no doubt of him meaning it. " I'm here for you. Always have been".

Kai almost surprised as he realised that it was true. Ray _had_ always been there for him, even tough he'd been too blind to notice it before. Whenever he had a nightmare, when Tyson left and smashed him to pieces…

He opened his eyes and looked at Ray, eyes filled with question.

" Why?".

The simple question had a major effect on Ray. The Tiger began to shiver, seeming panicked.

" You're my friend, Kai, possibly my best friend. That's why".

" Don't lie to me, Kon". Kai had completely gathered himself, his auburn eyes were flaming as he looked at his still shivering friend. " We respect each other far too much to talk bullshit, ne?".

Ray turned his head slowly to look at him, widened amber eyes filled with fear.

" I… I'm sorry. I can't…".

The neko-jin tried to slip away, but Kai was faster. He graphed Ray's hand tightly, forcing the boy to sit back down. For a long time there was a silence between them.

" When… when Tyson and Hilary were calling me back, there was also a third voice". His voice sounded unfamiliar in his own ears as he watched Ray, who refused to look at him. " I heard you, all the way. And for a small moment, I could see what you felt".

Ray turned his head slowly and looked at him in the eyes, seeming more confused than scared.

" And you don't hate me?". The voice was thin and small, so unlike Ray's that it hurt Kai.

Kai smiled, shaking his head.

" How could I ever hate you, when…". He stopped, and this time it was he who seemed shocked and scared. The words he'd been about to say were definitely not the ones he'd expected.

Ray frowned.

" 'When' what?" the Chinese urged, gaining his composure. " And don't you dare lie to me. We don't talk bullshit, remember?".

Kai opened his mouth to speak, but the words, though they were so simple, wouldn't come out. Eventually, he decided that actions would speak louder than words. Gathering all his courage, he gently cupped Ray's chin to his other hand and leaned in, kissing Ray softly on the lips. After a while he felt Ray's response, which held all the emotions the Chinese had kept inside of him for far too long.

After a while that seemed far too short they departed, needing air. He saw tears glittering on Ray's cheeks in the pale light, and with a small smile reached his hand and tenderly wiped them away.

" There's no need to cry anymore, kitten", he assured the Tiger in a whisper.

He wrapped his hands around Ray's again quivering form and gently pulled the now sobbing Chinese close to him. As the boy pressed his head against Kai's chest, the Phoenix closed his eyes, taking in Ray's familiar, comforting eucalyptus' scent. He smiled softly, caressing Ray's hair as the boy cried into his chest.

_It was you all along_, he realised. (A/N: Remember in chapter 5, the person who held Kai had this scent. Yeah, the person was Ray.)

At that magical moment, the words he'd been so afraid of before came easily.

" I love you too".

And so the two sat there for a long time, both adjusting to the new-found affection between them. It was obvious to them both that the road ahead of them would be long and rocky, but for a fist time in ages they were both optimistic about it. As long as they'd be together, nothing would be impossible.

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**END**

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